By CNN's Susan Garraty
The Fourth of July with its fireworks, barbecues, and parades is also a day when thousands of men and women around the country take their oath of allegiance and become American citizens. Debate and controversy surrounds the marked rise in the number of immigrants arriving from Central America hoping to make new homes in the United States, but aboard the historic battleship USS New Jersey in Camden, New Jersey on Independence Day there was only joy and celebration as 38 people swore allegiance to this country. The newly minted citizens included several men and women already serving in different branches of the U.S. armed forces.