According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), less than half a percent of the U.S. population is currently serving in the military—and only about 7 percent have ever served. It is not well known inside or outside of the military, but a significant number of military personnel are not U.S. citizens. As the U.S. Department of Homeland Security website notes, “Immigrants have a long history of serving in the United States armed forces. There are currently 30,000-plus non-citizens serving on active duty. Since 2002, over 100,000 foreign-born U.S. soldiers gained expedited citizenship through military service.”
Special provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) authorize the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to expedite the application and naturalization process for current members of the U.S. armed forces and veterans. The agency’s website provides details on what has been a successful program.
However, a recent Buzzfeed story indicated that this program may be coming to an end. “The federal agency in charge of processing citizenship has shuttered all of its offices at US Army basic training locations, putting up another roadblock for immigrant recruits who were promised a fast track to citizenship in return for their service,” the story said.
This deserves the military’s attention—and the nation’s. During my 30 years of Navy service on eight ships and several shore postings, I had numerous opportunities to see non-citizen immigrants serve with honor alongside their citizen counterparts. One event stands out in particular. When I commanded the USS San Jacinto (CG-56), a junior enlisted member of my engineering department completed his citizenship requirements and was invited to be one of a select group sworn in by the Secretary of Defense in a naturalization ceremony at the Pentagon. He invited me to come along with his family to participate in this event. On the four-hour drive, I heard stories from his family about their home in South America, how they came to achieve legal immigration status, and much about their pride in accompanying their sailor to his swearing-in ceremony. In the Pentagon courtyard, about 75 individuals wearing the uniforms of every branch, along with their families, enjoyed the spotlight for a few minutes, raised their right hand, and became U.S. citizens. In a long career with so many memories, few stand out as much as this one does for the pride and sense of accomplishment I recall on that sailor’s face.
The next day, the sailor put his uniform back on—as he had done for a seven-month deployment and arduous shipyard period and went back to work—as a U.S. citizen. During my time in the Navy, I always told the sailors on my ships that whatever the length of their service, whether a single enlistment or a 30-year career, raising their hands and swearing to protect and defend the Constitution made them patriots. That some sailors would do this for a country not their own was especially moving. According to recent census data, as much as five percent of the active duty force are non-U.S. citizens—proud sailors, soldiers, airmen, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen serving in ships, aircraft, and the land forces. The impact they have on readiness is both positive and dramatic. Many military readers may be surprised to learn that in your command, working shoulder to shoulder with you, there are likely to be several service members who are not citizens.
As the services experience difficulties meeting existing recruiting goals, and most of the services in fact have established goals for growth (such as the 355-ship Navy). It makes no sense in this context to close down a program that adds an incentive for as many as one of every 20 recruits to join. Non-citizens are serving on our nation’s front lines around the world, allowing you and me to sleep soundly in safety. It seems self-destructive to allow an unintended consequence of other decisions to shut down a program that works. Our immigrant service members are part of the fabric of our nation and its defense; we should thank them for their service, not turn our backs on them.
Captain Cordle retired from the Navy in 2013 after 30 years of service. His active-duty assignments included director of manpower and personnel for Commander, Naval Surface Forces Atlantic, and command of the USS Oscar Austin (DDG-79) and USS San Jacinto (CG-56). He is the 2010 recipient of the U.S. Navy League’s Captain John Paul Jones Award for Inspirational Leadership.
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