By Michael Daly
They speak languages deemed of particular importance to national
security. But as they wait for basic training, Trump canceled DACA—and
possibly their dreams of serving.
Among those who watched the smoke rise from the World Trade Center
into a perfect blue sky on 9/11 were an Army Reserve officer on the
cliffs at West Point and a 7-year-old undocumented immigrant on the
street in Queens.
The officer was Maj. Margaret Stock, and in the
days afterward she decided that the attacks might have been prevented if
the military had not been so lacking in personnel fluent in foreign
languages such as those spoken by the plotters.
Stock set about
creating the Military Accessions Vital to the National Interest (MAVNI)
program, which offered expedited citizenship to immigrants who speak
languages of particular importance in terms of national security. The
program was also open to physicians, nurses, and dentists who could
offset a longtime shortage of medical personnel in the armed services.
The overall principle was simple.
“The whole idea of the program was to make sure we have enough people to protect the country,” Stock told The Daily Beast.
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Source: The Daily Beast
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