Lewelyn Dixon in May 2025, after her release from the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma. (Photo from Facebook/Migrante sa U)
Lewelyn Dixon, a longtime University of Washington (UW) laboratory technician who spent nearly three months in federal immigration detention after returning from the Philippines, is now a U.S. citizen.
Dixon, who had been a lawful permanent resident for decades, took the Oath of Allegiance on July 20, according to The Seattle Times. The ceremony coincided with her 66th birthday.
Dixon had lived in the United States for more than five decades after immigrating from the Philippines as a teenager. U.S. Customs and Border Protection took her into custody in February 2025, after she returned to Sea-Tac Airport from a trip abroad. She was later transferred to the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma.
In May 2025, an immigration judge ruled that Dixon should not be deported and she was released. About a month later, she applied for U.S. citizenship.
Dixon had been eligible to naturalize for years but previously decided against it because she believed that doing so could jeopardize her Philippine citizenship and her family’s property there. The Philippines has since changed its laws to allow dual citizenship.
Dixon plans to retire from the UW at the end of August. In October, she expects to return to the Philippines for a vacation—this time as an U.S. passport holder and citizen.
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