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I became an American citizen three years ago, and if I'd been arrested, maybe that wouldn't have happened. That was a very proud moment, by the way. I still have my Irish passport, but becoming an American citizen was important in terms of my family.

I served my time and came out of prison when I was just 26 and have worked with the government for 37 years. But people only remember me for what I did before that.

I did become American citizen in order to vote. I lived in this country for a very long time and I finally reached the point where I thought, I'm often sticking my neck out on various issues as all human beings have a right to do.

It was a really big deal to become an American citizen the right way. You have to work really hard, and it is such an honor to be able to say that.

I wish we would all remember that being American is not just about the freedom we have; it is about those who gave it to us.

I lost everything when they put us in prison. I was an enemy alien, a man without a country.

In 1960, when I came out of prison as an ex-convict, I had more freedom under parolee supervision than there's available... in America right now.

To be in prison so long, it's difficult to remember exactly what you did to get there.