Sowing the seeds: Take your faith in mother nature to the next level in 2021 with perennials such as rattlesnake master, globe thistle, and Virginia bluebells, courtesy of the Monticello Fall Plant and Nursery Sale. The popular annual event is taking safety precautions that include pre-registration, limited occupancy, and time limits that allow each guest 45 minutes to shop. Plant availability varies.
Tag: Monticello
Categories
Pick: Monticello’s virtual tours
Viewing the past: Always wanted to visit Monticello but never had the time? And now that you have the time, the front door at TJ’s place is locked. Fear not: Monticello is using Zoom to provide a virtual opportunity to explore one of our country’s most iconic sites and the legacy of Thomas Jefferson. Connect with people around the world through a live, guided tour (questions taken), with reflections on the third president’s philosophies and inventions, and the lives of enslaved people at his Charlottesville plantation.
Ongoing, $10, monticello.org.
“We were scattered all over the country, never to meet each other again until we were in another world,” wrote enslaved laborer Peter Fossett after his family and friends were sold in Monticello’s 1827 and 1829 estate sales.
Thomas Jefferson died in debt, and soon after his death his family auctioned off the crops, furniture, and people that Jefferson held at Monticello. The 130 enslaved people held there represented 90 percent of the appraised value of Jefferson’s property.
At the Northside Library on January 13, a collection of descendants of those who had been enslaved at Monticello gathered to share the stories of their families. Niya Bates, Monticello’s director of African American history, moderated the panel.
“I want to thank you for going on this difficult journey with us tonight,” Bates said at the beginning of the event.
“We should not ever memorialize that sale,” said panelist Calvin Jefferson, a retired archivist and descendant of multiple Monticello enslaved families. (Jefferson noted that his surname does not come from Thomas Jefferson.) “The separation of the enslaved was a very tragic thing for the people that were separated.”
But now, the families forced apart in those traumatic diasporas are finding each other once again through painstaking genealogical work. Bates coordinates the Getting Word oral history project, which seeks to catalog the stories of these families and help descendants learn more about their ancestors.
“It’s moving in a very deep way, the wealth of information that’s been given to us,” said Myra Anderson, a descendant of the Hern family.
Jefferson has met some of his relatives through this process and found an immediate connection. “I’ve known you all my life, and I just met you,” he said. “It’s astounding. When we talk, it’s like we grew up together.”
Complete genealogical information for these families often doesn’t exist. But even scant details can be comforting and empowering to descendants. “You know their names. You know what they did. You know they had kids,” said Anderson. “It’s no longer this abstract thought. You know everything about them.”
Anderson told a story about how two of her male ancestors successfully petitioned Jefferson to purchase their wives. She identified with their perseverance and attitude. “I think that spirit of advocacy runs in my DNA,” Anderson said. “That’s something I still do today.”
These tales sat untold for many years, buried by time and the pain of continued discrimination.
Joan Burton said she saw her family name, Gillette, in a book about Sally Hemings, and decided to inquire about a possible connection at Monticello. Indeed, she found that her family were descendants of enslaved people there. “I was totally bewildered by the fact that I had lived here all this time and never knew this,” Burton said.
For Burton, the desire to unearth this history is new. “I cannot say my family talked about their slave ancestors,” Burton said. “The motto was, ‘slavery was awful, and it’s over.’”
“The pain caused by slavery still lives in many generations and in many ways,” Burton continued. “A lot of what we live with today is a result of slavery. I’m glad that it’s being discussed now because it’s something that everybody needs to know about.”
Nothing about this work is easy. “It’s a slog, looking for your family in property records,” Burton said. “But I won’t give it up.”
The conference room at the Northside Library was full to the brim—organizers estimated more than 130 people were in attendance. While the Confederate statues still stand, the evening offered another indication that some part of Charlottesville is interested in engaging with this history, at least in a small way.
“I am very proud to have a relative up at Monticello,” said Deborah Granger, another panelist. “You have to go up there. You have to sit there and feel their presence and what they went through. To me, I felt so overwhelmed, with their spirit going right through me.”
“I have a hard time talking about it, I’ll be honest,” said Burton. “When I go to Monticello, I go to the cemetery, because my fifth-great-grandparents are buried there. I have the feeling that I don’t really want to be there. But I can’t not go there.”
During a question period after the panel discussion, one audience member stood up and said she was an American history teacher. She asked the panelists if they had any advice for teachers trying to communicate this history.
“The answer to your questions is very simple,” said Jefferson. “Tell the truth.”
Correction, 1/23: An earlier version of this story referred to Joan Burton as Jill Merton.
Back in 2018, the wedding site Zola published an article titled “8 Unique Charlottesville Wedding Venues,” including The Jefferson Theater, Meriwether Springs Vineyard, and James Monroe’s Highland—one of Virginia’s most famous plantations.
But now Zola is one of several wedding planning websites that will no longer promote former slave plantations as wedding sites. While Zola and Brides plan to remove plantations from their venue lists entirely, The Knot and WeddingWire will still list them, but change the language they use in their descriptions, ensuring that it does not romanticize or glorify “a history that includes slavery.”
And Pinterest announced that it will limit the distribution of plantation wedding content by removing related words from search recommendations and auto-complete features and adding a content warning on plantation wedding-related searches. It will also stop accepting ads from those venues.
The changes come in response to a campaign by the civil rights group Color of Change, urging wedding industry leaders to change the way they market plantations as “charming” and “elegant” places for weddings.
“Plantations are physical reminders of one of the most horrific human rights abuses the world has ever seen,” the group wrote in a letter sent to Pinterest, Martha Stewart Weddings, Zola, Brides, The Knot, and WeddingWire in October. “The wedding industry routinely denies the violent conditions Black people faced under chattel slavery by promoting plantations as romantic places to marry.”
Here in Charlottesville, which has a booming wedding industry and multiple area venues with a history of slavery, the controversy hits close to home.
Some sites, like The Inn at Meander Plantation in Locust Dale, make no mention of slavery on their websites, describing their grounds as the “ideal location for your dream Virginia wedding.” Others, like James Monroe’s Highland and Prospect Hill Plantation Inn, detail their history of slavery on their websites, but still portray themselves as a “charming, historic backdrop for your special day” and the “perfect Charlottesville wedding venue.”
However, the changes made by wedding planning websites—as well as Charlottesville’s recent grappling with its history of racism and oppression—could lead such wedding venues to take a second look at their language and practices.
Sara Bon-Harper, executive director of James Monroe’s Highland, agrees that venues with a history of slavery should be mindful of their language and not glorify “the very real experience of plantations as landscapes of trauma.”
Though the controversy surrounding plantation weddings hasn’t been an issue with clients, she says, James Monroe’s Highland is currently having an “internal conversation” about its wedding policies.
“Highland, like all historic sites, exists in a changing world,” Bon-Harper says. “Because of the current discourse, we are looking not only at our language but our practice. We will also look at the appropriateness of having those uses of our property, and what are the best uses of our property that reflect our commitment to fully examining history in an authentic way.”
“We are not at all interested in whitewashing,” she adds.
It’s possible places like Highland will follow in the footsteps of Monticello, which does not allow private, non-educational events on its “historic core,” where enslaved people lived and worked. Instead, weddings are held at Montalto, a separate property overlooking Monticello, but still a part of Jefferson’s historic landholdings.
“We know that enslaved people worked on that mountaintop, but we don’t believe it was a site where [they] lived,” says Niya Bates, director of African-American history at Monticello.
Weddings are also “not a huge part of what we do,” says Bates. But the historic property’s efforts to honestly address its complicated history—especially as a member of the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience—might provide a model for other former plantations.
“We’ve always prided ourselves on interpreting the power of slaves here at Monticello, and that means recognizing that this place is a contested landscape. It is a former plantation, but it’s also a tourist attraction,” says Bates. “We have to balance those two things.”
Some members of the local wedding industry are also glad the discussion surrounding plantation weddings is coming to the forefront. Though her clients have never brought up the issue, Mia Crump, owner of Little Acorn Events, says she has discussed it with other wedding vendors who she thinks “share the opinion that [history] should be acknowledged and not looked at so idyllically.”
The new guidelines could affect the local wedding industry “in terms of people being more aware of the choices that they’re making,” Crump says, and she sees the changes as positive and necessary, as we “question the parts of our history that we as a society have glorified.”
Ultimately, it’s important that “we do teach about the ugly and tragic parts of our history, so that we can be sure to move forward into a lighter era,” she says.
Prospect Hill Plantation Inn and The Inn at Meander Plantation did not respond to requests for comment.
Monticello not pleased
The website of Ronnie Roberts, independent candidate for Albemarle sheriff, used one of the county’s most iconic images—Monticello—in its background. The only problem is, the Thomas Jefferson Foundation, which owns the mountaintop manse, does not allow images of the house to be used for commercial or political purposes.
“Monticello does not endorse political candidates or campaigns,” says spokesperson Jennifer Lyon. “We’ve respectfully asked the campaign to remove that image from its website.”
That was on September 3. By September 5, Roberts’ campaign website sported a new iconic image: the Albemarle Circuit courthouse at Court Square.
According to campaign manager John Darden, Roberts’ website developer bought a stock image of Monticello. “It appears someone voiced a complaint,” says Darden, suggesting it may have come from the camp of opponent Chan Bryant.
“No one from my campaign notified Monticello,” says Bryant. “What Ronnie uses on his website is between him and Monticello.”
“It wasn’t a big deal,” says Darden. “We’re focusing on campaigning, not on who’s using what photo.”
Quote of the week
“We’re not a school; we’re a real estate hedge fund.” —A senior official at Liberty University is one of several criticizing university president Jerry Falwell Jr.’s behavior in a bombshell Politico report.
In brief
Over the top
UVA Health System sued former patients with unpaid medical bills more than 36,000 times from 2012 to 2018, sometimes for as little as $13.91, leaving many families with no other options but to declare bankruptcy, according to the Washington Post. UVA President Jim Ryan says that he’s working to make the hospital “more generous and more humane,” and expects proposals to be announced in the next week.
Long-awaited trial
The Confederate statues lawsuit against the city finally is set to begin Wednesday, September 11. Under state law, the monuments are protected as war memorials. However, defendants argue that the statues violate the equal protection clause of the Constitution. Plaintiffs in the case are seeking more than $500,000 in attorney’s fees.
Dubious distinction
Virginia is ranked the worst state for workers—for the second year in a row—in a recent Oxfam report, beating out even perennial worst-state-for-everything Mississippi. On the other hand, in July, CNBC ranked the right-to-work commonwealth the best state for businessVPM radio reports.
Amended alma mater
UVA, ahead of its September 6 football home opener, launched a video campaign to dissuade fans from singing “not gay” or “fuck Tech” during the “Good Old Song.” Notable UVA figures like actress Tina Fey and basketball player Jay Huff appeared in the video, imploring fans to refrain from singing offensive lyrics.
UVA slips in rankings
In U.S. News & World Report’s latest university rankings released September 9, UVA dropped three spots to No. 28 among national universities and fell from third to fourth place among public colleges. This snapped UVA’s unbroken 28-year streak of ranking in the top three of best public universities. UVA President Jim Ryan had announced plans earlier this year to make the school the top public university in the country by 2030.
Mobile homes get an upgrade
Habitat for Humanity of Greater Charlottesville and the Local Energy Alliance Program have teamed up to reduce high energy bills for Southwood Mobile Home Park residents. Created due to poor insulation and inefficient HVAC systems in their homes, a pilot program is in the works to provide energy-efficient, cost-reducing upgrades—like adding roof insulation, repairing or replacing HVAC systems and sealing drafty windows—to 10 mobile homes and is set to launch this fall.
Hero memorialized
The Barracks Road post office was officially renamed September 9 to memorialize fallen Army Captain Humayun Khan.
Khan, a UVA graduate, was killed in 2004 while deployed in Iraq when an explosive-filled taxicab detonated on its way into Khan’s compound. The then-27-year-old was posthumously awarded a Purple Heart and Bronze Star.
Then-congressman Tom Garrett filed legislation to dedicate the post office to Khan in July 2017, but accidentally identified a contract postal unit near UVA—not the Barracks Road location—to be renamed. The erroneous address was amended this past April.
Senator Tim Kaine and 7th District Representative Abigail Spanberger joined Khizr and Ghazala Khan to unveil the honorary plaque renaming the Barracks Road facility in honor of their son.
The ceremony took place on what would have been Khan’s 43rd birthday.
From the mountains of Wintergreen to the valley where Scottsville sits, the Charlottesville area is exploding with Independence Day celebrations. Bonus: Since July 4 falls on a Thursday this year, party time stretches out over a long weekend. What this means is that, in addition to barbecuing in your local park or backyard, you can also partake in one (or more) of the many patriotic offerings by local municipalities and businesses. Boom! Just like that.
June 29
Crozet Independence Day Parade and Celebration
The parade, led by the volunteer fire department, starts at Crozet Elementary School and snakes along Crozet Avenue through downtown to Claudius Crozet Park, where all sorts of fun will ensue. Roots rock band Jacabone takes the stage, and kids’ games and rides (including bounce houses and laser tag) will be available, along with plenty of food. Adults can enjoy local refreshments by Bold Rock Cidery, and Starr Hill and Pro Re Nata breweries. 5pm parade and party, 9:30pm fireworks, suggested donation $4 per adult and $2 per child 12 or younger, crozetcommunity.org.
June 30
Free Union Independence Day Parade
Decorate a wagon, bicycle, scooter, dog, horse, or float and join the parade from the Church of the Brethren to Free Union Baptist Church. 4pm, free, Millington Road, Free Union 973-7361.
July 4
4th of July in Scottsville
The little town on the James River’s annual Independence Day features a morning parade led by the Scottsville Volunteer Fire Department, complete with floats and musical performances. The party continues all day long and into the night at Dorrier Park, with more music, food, and fireworks. This is a biggie—estimated attendance is 7,000! 9am-10pm, free, James River Road, Scottsville. 531-6030, scottsville.org/events.
Independence Day Concert and Celebration
Celebrate at the home of President James Monroe, a Revolutionary War veteran who died July 4, 1831. Enjoy a live performance by musicians from the Heifetz International Music Institute, as well as children’s crafts and historic games. 2pm, free, 2050 James Monroe Pkwy. 293-8000, highland.org.
Independence Day Celebration at the Frontier Culture Museum
This annual event includes a reading of the Declaration of Independence, games, a pie eating contest, crafts, and historical re-enactments. 9am, free, 1290 Richmond Rd., Staunton. (540)332-7850, frontiermuseum.org.
July 4th at Monticello
Monticello hosts its 57th annual Independence Day celebration with a not-to-be-missed naturalization ceremony; this year, more than 70 people will take the oath to become U.S. citizens. (The scheduled tour of Thomas Jefferson’s residence is sold out.) The keynote speaker is Charlottesville resident and Gold Star parent Khizr Khan, whose son, UVA grad and U.S. Army Captain Humayun Khan, died in 2004 trying to stop a suicide bomber in Iraq, and was awarded a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star. Since Khan’s headline-making speech at the Democratic National Convention in 2016, he has continued to advocate for religious tolerance. 9am, free, 931 Thomas Jefferson Pkwy., 984-9800; attendees are urged to register at monticello.org for free shuttle transportation to the event from Piedmont Virginia Community College (501 College Dr.), monticello.org.
Nelson County Fourth of July Parade
Nelson County kicks off Independence Day with a children’s bicycle parade followed by a bigger one with floats, marching bands, antique cars, and more. 10am, free. Front Street, Lovingston, 906-1200, nelsoncounty-va.gov.
Patriotism in the Park
McIntire Park is the epicenter of Charlottesville’s July 4 celebration, with local bands, food, and family-friendly activities leading up to the annual fireworks display. 5pm, free, shuttle service available from the Albemarle County Office Building and Charlottesville High School, 970-3260.
Red, White, Blue in Greene Independence Day Celebration
Greene County’s celebration begins this year with a parade down Main Street, and the festivities end with a major fireworks display. Live music, food trucks, and many activities for children and adults. 5-10pm, free, Stanardsville, (540)290-8344, rwbng.org.
Happy Birthday America at Carter Mountain Orchard
Hayrides, family-friendly games, live music all day, and a nearly 360-degree view of the area’s fireworks displays. Oh, and adult beverages from the Bold Rock Tap Room and the Prince Michel Wine Shop. Noon-9:30pm, 1435 Carters Mountain Trail, 977-1833, chilesfamilyorchards.com
July 4-7
July 4th Jubilee
Wintergreen Resort’s celebration churns on through the weekend with live music and activities including a bonfire, arts and crafts, stargazing, an outdoor movie, a block party for kids, chairlift rides, games, and axe throwing (yes, you read that correctly). 9am July 4 through 8pm July 7, activity prices and times vary, Route 664, Wintergreen, 325-2200, wintergreenresort.com/July-4th-Jubilee.
Join Thomas Jefferson—aka Bill Barker, the new T.J. impersonator—for local wine, beer, and picnic fare from Farm Table, on June 14 on the west lawn of the presidential plantation. Monticello is always a beautiful place to visit, but at twilight, with an adult beverage in hand, you may gain a new perspective. (Hell, Barker may even seem to be an apparition.) Stroll the grounds, explore the gardens, and take in the views from the mountaintop as evening approaches and the work week fades in your rear-view mirror. If the mosquitoes swarm, you can escape inside for a special tour of the upper floors. Also offered, sans Barker, on July 12 and August 9. $5 admission; pay-as-you-go for food and drink. Indoor tours must be booked in advance. 931 Thomas Jefferson Pkwy., 984-9800, monticello.org.
Wine and dine
Summer winery dinners are kicking into high gear, offering a special night out for the local staycation crowd. On June 14, Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyards’ Strawberry Moon Wine Dinner features Mara des Bois strawberries (they’re small, French, and sweet, like Audrey Tautou) from the winery’s kitchen garden in each dish of chef Ian Rynecki’s multi-course meal, which also includes wine pairings by Michael Shaps of Michael Shaps Wineworks. Veritas Vineyards’ Starry Nights food, music, and wine events take place June 8, July 13, and August 10, featuring live bands and a range of offerings, from simply laying out a picnic blanket to enjoy the evening on the expansive grounds to a three-course meal on the porch. A more down-home experience awaits at Knight’s Gambit Vineyard on June 29, when Americana band Kat & the Travelers play on the porch while a food truck serves up tacos. Overlooking a horse pasture and with mesmerizing mountain views, Knight’s Gambit is an Albemarle County gem. Meanwhile, on the evening of June 14 at Glass House Winery, in Free Union, Charlottesville’s ADAR Duo provides the tunes and the Two Brothers Southwestern Grill food truck rolls in from Ruckersville. See the wineries’ websites for details.
By Natalie Jacobsen and Whitney Kenerly
Each July 4, people of many nationalities gather on the steps of Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello to pledge their allegiance to the United States. After undergoing a lengthy process to become a U.S. citizen, the ceremony is the last step in each person’s journey. And everyone has his or her own story to tell: whether they chose to come here for religious freedom or the opportunity for better lives for themselves and their families. In the following pages, you’ll meet three individuals who all call Charlottesville home. And you’ll also learn how their lives have changed since becoming Americans.
Gabriel Montes de Oca
Country of origin: Mexico
Years in the United States: 25
American citizen since: 2016
His daughter was barely walking when Gabriel Montes de Oca and his family emigrated to the United States from Mexico. It was 1993, and many Mexican families had made the decision to move north, seeking opportunities and employment.
“We first arrived in Texas, and I found some work, but we moved to Washington, D.C., when I found a better job,” says Montes de Oca. He works in construction, and has moved around the mid-Atlantic region with his company. “It’s a very large company, and is very [reliable] and has given me a very good way of life for my family,” he says.
They wanted to leave Mexico in the early ’90s “because Mexico had no opportunities to grow for us. The political guys, they are all corrupt. There was no way to move up and make a life,” he says. “My daughter was so young. We needed a new place that cared about [our well-being].” They believed they could find the care, resources and a job to make a living in the United States.
While living in Washington, Montes de Oca often saw pictures of and read stories about Charlottesville in the newspaper. Eventually, he had an opportunity with his company to move his family here. Now, Montes de Oca has advanced in his career and he makes his own schedule and picks the projects he wants to work on.
Montes de Oca was naturalized on July 4, 2016, at Monticello. In mid-June of this year, his son, who was born in Charlottesville, graduated from Charlottesville High School.
“My son is now starting to think about going to college,” he says. His daughter is working and making her own life in the city, and both children have only known life in the United States.
“I visit Mexico many times, maybe twice a year. Yes, I miss [many aspects] of Mexico, but I live here now,” says Montes de Oca. “My family doesn’t know any other life; they don’t know life in Mexico.”
If you were trying to leave Mexico today, would you still choose the United States?
I think it’s too late for many people, especially in Mexico, to come to America. Most people now are coming from Central America, because they don’t have anything after storms or government corruption. Few people from Mexico are crossing the borders. There are too many laws and so many changes on coming to America now, I think it is too difficult. I wouldn’t want to try to come here illegally. It is too dangerous.
Would you change anything about the United States?
I cannot think of anything. Every country goes up and down. You give it time, and things will change. Some things get better, sometimes no. But it is okay in time.
Are you proud to be an American?
Yes, I am happy. This country gave me everything. I do the best that I can. I believe my family is happier than many of those who do not have what we have here.
Judith Claire Christian
Country of origin: United Kingdom
Years in the United States: 27
American citizen since: 2016
Until 2016, Judith Claire Christian had never voted. The busy mother of three and nurse practitioner had lived in the United States for more than 20 years, and during that time her status as a resident alien from the United Kingdom had allowed her to finish school and work. But it was the 2016 election that compelled her to take the final step needed to participate in the most important civic right of every American—the right to vote.
Christian grew up on a farm in a small village in the United Kingdom, and initially came to the United States right after high school to work as a camp counselor in Maine through a foreign exchange program. She expected America to be bigger, louder and brighter than any other place she’d been, and thought that its residents would “all be middle-age men who wore plaid pants and played golf.” Instead, she was taken aback by the scenery in Maine and all its large trees. She met an American at camp, whom she eventually married and divorced. She stayed in the United States to finish school at UVA.
In 2016, Christian married her second husband, an Englishman she met while a student at UVA, and found herself discussing politics more and more with her family at the dinner table. She was aware of the impact of the upcoming election on the community, and on the people she treated at the Orange County Free Clinic, many of whom did not have health insurance. Two years after her husband became a citizen, she was inspired to do the same.
After living in the U.S. for so long, what made you decide to become a citizen in 2016?
My desire to become a citizen was absolutely driven by the need to vote in [the 2016] general election. Getting that was really emotional. I walked directly from the Monticello ceremony to register to vote and started crying. I think it felt like the final piece of really being included in this country and that was really powerful.
If you could do it all over again, do you think you would still choose to stay in America and become a citizen?
I would definitely do it all over again in terms of coming and staying initially. For all the trials and tribulations of getting to this point, I have a wonderful life and I wouldn’t do anything different. I’m proud of the life I’ve been able to build here and what America has afforded me to be able to do, especially in terms of giving back through my work at the free clinic.
Voting for the first time is a powerful memory. I hope that it was memorable for my children, too, and that it encourages them to vote. If I felt that it would have made a stronger impact on my children to have voted earlier, I would have become a citizen earlier.
What do you want people to know about your experience becoming a citizen?
I will always remember when I was at the ceremony being impressed by the diversity of people who were there. In that current media environment immigrants were not presented as a positive. But at the ceremony, I was feeling that we all brought so much to a country that was founded on immigrants, and that we had all come from different walks and creeds—all of that makes America what it is, and that’s difficult to describe. It’s beautiful.
Laique Khan
Country of origin: Pakistan
Years in the United States: 8
American citizen since: 2017
Laique Khan came to the United States from Pakistan eight years ago to join his family. Many of his in-laws, brothers and sisters lived in Charlottesville, so he felt he had a good idea of what it would be like to live in America. As a devout Muslim, he was happy to find that he was able to continue practicing his religion while living and working here, despite concerns in his community regarding the political rhetoric around Islam.
Respect and equality are of critical importance to Khan, and one of the reasons he is happy to be an American. He wanted to live somewhere where he could have a chance to grow in a career, and where his daughter would have the most opportunities.
Khan, who works at GMP Pharmaceuticals, became a United States citizen on July 4, 2017. Joining him in becoming a citizen at that ceremony was his daughter who recently graduated from UVA with a degree in biology. She is now studying for the MCAT exam, and hopes to go to medical school.
What has it been like to live here in the United States?
Where I’m from, Karachi, which is the fourth-largest city in the world, I hate to see the VIP culture and movement with people there. The rich and armies can go around and do whatever. Here, everybody seems to be respectful. Everybody obeys traffic laws. You know, my dream was for my daughter to go to a good university and graduate, and that is what has happened. That is good.
What was the biggest challenge you faced after you moved to the United States?
Initially, we were living with my brother-in-law’s family. I was trying to find a job, and we lived there for two years. I applied to a lot of places, and I was dejected because I had been a professional for many years in Pakistan. Then my family went through UVA because everybody said it was an equal opportunity employer. I admire UVA people. The hiring person there—they are so, so nice. Anytime I need a job they are so helpful. I respect them a lot.
How are you feeling after the Supreme Court recently upheld President Trump’s executive order commonly referred to as the Muslim ban?
My country is not yet under that category—it’s not one of the countries listed. I always thought that the U.S. was for the freedom of religion, but I’m not concerned about the political scenario. There is not such a big problem here. I’m still doing my prayers and going to my mosque. My CEO allows me to go on my Friday prayer. In three years I’ve never missed my Friday prayer. That’s a really good thing. That’s why I respect the people here.
Do you think it would be more difficult for you to try to become a citizen now?
It’s now a very long process to become a citizen when you’re my nationality. Everything you have to face…we have to face everything. This seems to be quite hard. A lot of the people in the Muslim community are talking about that.
Civics engagement
For the United States naturalization test, a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services officer administers an oral test to each applicant. Out of 100 possible history and government questions, the officer will choose 10 to ask each person. An applicant must answer six of out 10 questions correctly to pass the civics portion of the test.
How would you do on a test about American government? See for yourself with these 10 sample questions.
Questions
1. What is the supreme law of the land?
2. What is one right or freedom from the First Amendment?
3. How many amendments does the Constitution have?
4. What are two rights in the Declaration of Independence?
5. The House of Representatives has how many voting members?
6. If both the president and the vice president can no longer serve, who becomes president?
7. Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the federal government. What is one power of the federal government?
8. Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the states. What is one power of the states?
9. Name one U.S. territory.
10. Why does the American flag have 13 stripes?
Answers
1. The Constitution
2. Speech, religion, assembly, press and petition the government
3. 27
4. Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness
5. 435
6. The speaker of the house
7. To print money, to declare war, to create an army and to make treaties
8. Provide schooling and education, provide protection (police), provide safety (fire departments), give a driver’s license and approve zoning and land use
9. Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Northern Mariana Islands and Guam
10. Because there were 13 original colonies.
Categories
LIVING Picks: July 4-10
Food & Drink
’90s summer brunch
Sunday, July 8
Break out your scrunchies and slap bracelets and enjoy throwback ’90s covers from Supervixen during a brunch with killer views. Admission is free; food available for purchase, 11am-2pm. Carter Mountain Orchard, 1435 Carters Mountain Trail. 977-1833.
Family
Independence Day celebration
Wednesday, July 4
Come to Monticello to celebrate Independence Day and the annual naturalization ceremony that this year features guest speaker Andrew Tisch. Free, 9am-noon. Monticello, 931 Thomas Jefferson Pkwy. 984-9800.
Nonprofit
Harmonia
Saturday, July 8
Area musicians including Erin Lunsford, Genna Matthew, John D’earth and Davina Jackson join forces for a benefit to support Youngcenter.org and Creciendo Juntos, which both aid migrant children. Free admission (donations accepted), 4- 8pm. IX Art Park, 522 Second St. SE. cj-network.org
Health & Wellness
Kids aerial yoga
Saturday, July 7
No gymnastics background required for this aerial yoga session that promotes balance and strength for kids ages 6 to 10. $20 (RSVP required), 1:30-2:30pm. FlyDog Yoga, 1039 Millmont St. 964-1964.
Categories
LIVING Picks: Week of June 27-July 3
Food & Drink
Murder in the Vineyards
Saturday, June 30
DuCard Vineyards is hosting a catered dinner and a show, during which guests will have to solve a mystery before the night is over. $79, 6:30pm. DuCard Vineyards, 40 Gibson Hollow Ln., Etlan. (540) 923-4206.
Family
Crozet Independence Day celebration
Saturday, June 30
The Crozet Volunteer Fire Department leads the way with a parade, followed by festivities in the park that include live music, food and a fireworks show. $4 per person (kids 12 and under free) for park entry, 5-10pm. Claudius Crozet Park, 1075 Claudius Crozet Park, Crozet. crozet community.org
Health & Wellness
Newborn care class
Thursday, June 28
The UVA Hospital is holding a class that covers everything from how to care for a newborn, to behavior habits and the basics of baby care, along with other resources. Free, 6:30-8:30pm. UVA Hospital, 1215 Lee St. 924-0000.
Nonprofit
Chickens at Jefferson’s Monticello
Thursday, June 28
Pat Foreman, known as “The Chicken Whisperer,” will demonstrate how integral poultry was as a source of food and income for the enslaved community at Monticello. $55, 6- 8pm. 931 Thomas Jefferson Pkwy. 984-9880.