"You Can't Have the Green Card" Quotes

“the vile political rhetoric that has been ongoing in the USA for the past few years has made me doubt my reasons for becoming a U.S. citizen a few times—but not enough to change my mind. Despite what the world may think of America, the truth is that more people want to get in than want to get out.”
― Gudjon Bergmann, "You Can't Have the Green Card": The Incredible Story of How I Became a U.S. Citizen

“I confess that during the citizenship application process the founding principles of this country have grown on me. I have come to believe in the ideal that “We the People” can come together “to form a more perfect Union”. The United States represent the most awesome social experiment in the world—a melting pot of cultures, united behind the idea of living free in a democratic Republic.”
― Gudjon Bergmann, "You Can't Have the Green Card": The Incredible Story of How I Became a U.S. Citizen

“We have made a conscious effort to blend in with U.S. society and have done our best to develop good English skills. Today, both Johanna and I communicate in English with ease, and our children speak English at native fluency levels, but we continue to speak Icelandic at home.”
― Gudjon Bergmann, "You Can't Have the Green Card": The Incredible Story of How I Became a U.S. Citizen

“When people ask us why we moved to Austin we can truthfully answer: We pointed at the map.”
― Gudjon Bergmann, "You Can't Have the Green Card": The Incredible Story of How I Became a U.S. Citizen

“The first men to set foot on the moon were sent to Iceland for acclimation—that’s how unlike to anything else the Icelandic landscape is.”
― Gudjon Bergmann, "You Can't Have the Green Card": The Incredible Story of How I Became a U.S. Citizen

“She had lived in Iceland from birth, a total of 36 years, without knowing that she had the right to live, work and vote in the USA.”
― Gudjon Bergmann, "You Can't Have the Green Card": The Incredible Story of How I Became a U.S. Citizen

“It must be said that “winning” the green card is a misnomer. We had simply won the right to formally apply and have our application processed. We still had to pay for all the processing.”
― Gudjon Bergmann, "You Can't Have the Green Card": The Incredible Story of How I Became a U.S. Citizen

“Most people in Iceland are either referred to as the son or daughter of their father. For example, a woman with a father named John is Johnsdaughter, or in Icelandic Jonsdottir. A man with a father named John is Johnsson, or Jonsson in Icelandic.”
― Gudjon Bergmann, "You Can't Have the Green Card": The Incredible Story of How I Became a U.S. Citizen

“I have vivid memories of going to Pizza Hut and enjoying a thin crust pizza and a jug of Pepsi, and, getting high stacks of buttermilk pancakes with syrup.”
― Gudjon Bergmann, "You Can't Have the Green Card": The Incredible Story of How I Became a U.S. Citizen

“During World War II, Iceland was a poor country with a total population of about 120,000 people. In contrast, the occupying U.S. force consisted of roughly 40,000 men—which meant that U.S. soldiers outnumbered adult Icelandic men—at least during the height of the occupation.”
― Gudjon Bergmann, "You Can't Have the Green Card": The Incredible Story of How I Became a U.S. Citizen

“It was in this atmosphere of war, heroism, and controversy that my wife’s grandmother, Johanna Boel Sigurdardottir, met and fell in love with Samuel Emmett Hearn Jr. He was a gallant soldier, and she was a natural beauty.”
― Gudjon Bergmann, "You Can't Have the Green Card": The Incredible Story of How I Became a U.S. Citizen