Democrat Representative for Texas Joaquín Castro is promoting a measure that would allow the United States Army to admit young "Dreamers" who wish to join the Armed Forces, and has already received support from other republican Representatives, local media reported.
The young undocumented immigrants were introduced to the United States when they were children and have no possibility to serve in the Army, despite that many of them were educated and raised since they were little in the United States, and this is why the measure promoted by Castro has the objective to allow these young immigrants that qualify for the so called Deferred Action Law, better known as the "Dream Act", to join the ranks of the American Army, reported the NBC.
Democrat Representatives Luis Gutiérrez and Joaquín Castro and Republicans Mike Coffman and Jeff Denham have come together in what they consider to be a bipartisan effort to allow the Dreamers, young people who entered the country when they were younger than 15, to serve in the American Army, which could become a route towards citizenship for these young people who consider the United States to be their homeland.
"If you're willing to join our military and risk your life for the United States, then you should be given the opportunity," considered Assemblyman Richard J. Durbin on Monday, who also promised to grand residency cards to certain illegal immigrants serving in the Army, according to The Washington Post.
On their part, the young Dreamers asked Congress on Tuesday for an immigration reform which includes the opportunity to serve in the country's military.
Wearing camouflage and white shirts with #DreamArmy and the United States flag on them, young people from Kansas, Texas, Illinois, Florida and Colorado protested outside the U.S. Congress in the company of many Congressmen, according to Univisión.
"These young people were brought here by their parents when they were children, they grew up here, went to school, they don't know any other country besides the United States, they should have the opportunity to serve this country in the Armed Forces and earn their citizenship," said Coffman, according to the quoted source.