Arizona State University

OGL 340 Fall 2023

Write-up 1

Fernando Ibarra

Professor Christopher Glover

3 September 2023
 Citizenship and Community

There are many nations out there in the world and each has its respective laws and

regulations that citizens must abide by. Citizenship is being a member of a particular country

through a birthright or naturalization process. It is a legal status that gives you certain rights and

responsibilities that noncitizens cannot participate in or have. As a citizen in many nations, you

are given the right to vote, run for public office positions, and even things like collecting social

security are only available to citizens. This is a major selling point for many people as they can

community members make a meaningful impact on their community. You also have the

responsibility to follow the law and to contribute to the common good; however, everyone in the

community should follow the law regardless of citizenship status. Most communities can be

defined as a group of people with common identities or interests. It can be a physical community,

such as a neighborhood or town, or it can be a digital community, such as a social media group

or online forum. Communities provide a sense of belonging and support, and they can help

people to feel connected to others. As citizens, we have a responsibility to contribute to our

communities, both physical and digital. This can be done by volunteering our time, donating

money, or simply being a good neighbor. By participating in our communities, we can help to

make them stronger and more vibrant. Some can argue that citizenship and community go hand

in hand and can support each other for the better good.

In his book Imagined Communities, Anderson says this because within the nation,

regardless of how small it is, the members of that nation will most likely never know of each

other (Anderson, 2016). In a physical community, like a neighborhood or town, people may not

know all of their neighbors, but they share a common space and a common set of experiences.
They may also share a common identity, such as being members of a particular ethnic group or

religion. These are just a few characteristics of a physical community that they may share. In a

digital community, like a social media group or online forum, people may not know each other in

the real world, but they share a common interest or passion. They may also share a common

identity, such as being members of a particular fandom or political group. As the internet is more

common, I feel that digital communities are constantly changing and evolving. Things like

Discord play a major role in helping people in the online community validate their shared

common interests among a group. In his book Digital Community, James Ohler defines digital

citizenship as " The word citizenship derives from the Latin civitas, which means "state." It also

means "membership in that state"-_in other words, what we would call citizenship. Most of the

world relies on a legal concept of citizenship that has not been revisited in many years" (Ohler,

2010). Ohler argues that most of the world relies on some sort of membership to maintain order

among communities. This membership must be revisited constantly as there is not a singular

definition of citizenship as it changes alongside its people. Both members share a common

interest and a sense of belonging to their respective communities. It really just comes down to

what works best for the individual. The needs of the individual play a major role in determining

which community to choose.

There are many different ways to become a citizen. In most countries, there are two main ways:

by birth and through naturalization. Birthright citizenship is the most common way to become a

citizen in most countries. If you are born in a country, you are automatically granted citizenship

although there are some restrictions and limitations. Certain American territories can grant you

American citizenship even though you were born in a territory far away from the states. In

naturalization, you must undergo a process to meet certain requirements that vary from country
to country. Some requirements may include living in a country for a certain amount of time,

passing a citizenship test, or taking an oath of allegiance to the country. In the United States, the

citizenship test is largely based on our legal system and the history of our nation. The

requirements for naturalization in physical spaces and digital ones are similar, but there are some

differences. For example, in physical spaces, you may need to provide proof of your identity and

residency. In digital spaces, you may need to provide a digital fingerprint or other biometric data.

Here in California, you must give fingerprints, or a thumbprint, in order to receive your license.

In digital spaces, some countries will do a deep dive into your digital community postings and

dig deep into your history to gather a viewpoint of who you are. This is important, especially for

those seeking entry into another country as they may pose a threat and can be looking to infiltrate

a country with malintent.

My own experience with the process of becoming a citizen is limited. I was born in the

United States, so I did not have to go through the naturalization process. I took the quick 20-

question practice test and I feel like I did ok. I ended up scoring 15/20 on the test but I also

haven’t taken a history class in over 10 years. Becoming a citizen is a lot harder than that 20-

question exam can have you think. My father became a citizen through the naturalization process

just a few years ago. He had petitioned for residency back in the early 2000s and had to wait this

entire time for well over 15 years. He then had to wait another 5 years to petition to become a

citizen of the United States. He waited well over 20 years for the process, making it ridiculous in

my eyes to achieve. I have strong views on the matter because I have firsthand experience with it

and I was beyond happy when my dad came out of that immigration office waving his little

American flag. In becoming a citizen, we do have certain rights like the right to vote, freedom of

speech, and the right to due process of the law. We also have certain responsibilities like abiding
by the law, paying our taxes, and contributing to society. Being a citizen in physical spaces and

digitally are different but they also share some similarities. Ohler argued “Throughout history,

so-called “virtuous behavior” has been viewed as a key element of citizenship. This is no

different for digital citizens” (Ohler, 2010, Ch. 2). He claims that there should be no difference

for either community as we all should act virtuous in our interactions. The main difference

between the two is really the level of engagement that we are able to achieve. In physical

communities, we can achieve a greater sense of belonging than that of a digital community. In

digital communities, we may be able to communicate and engage more passively making it

easier to share information and stay in contact. Both aim to develop a sense of belonging

nonetheless.
 Works Cited

Anderson, B. (2016, September 13). Perusall. Retrieved August 31, 2023, from app.perusall.com
website: https://app.perusall.com/courses/ogl-340-digital-citizenship-2023-fall-a-518907029/
imagined-communities-reflections-on-the-origin-and-spread-of-nationalism-561476343?
chapter=chapter_01
Ohler, J. (2010). Perusall. Retrieved August 31, 2023, from app.perusall.com website:
https://app.perusall.com/courses/ogl-340-digital-citizenship-2023-fall-a-518907029/digital-
community-digital-citizen?chapter=chapter02

USCIS. (2021, September 16). Welcome to the 2008 civics practice test!
https://www.uscis.gov/citizenship/civics-practice-test-2008