The United States military, stretched thin in Afghanistan and Iraq, is reaching out to groups who were previously overlooked for recruitment. Overweight recruits are getting a second chance as are more recruits who lack a high school diploma. According to Pentagon data, during the final four months of 2008 the Army provided waivers to 18 percent of recruits who had medical conditions or criminal records that would have normally excluded them. Now the Pentagon is turning to another untapped group: immigrants living in the U.S. with temporary visas.
Illegal immigrants continue to be ineligible for military service, but immigrants who are permanent residents with documents known as “green cards,” have long been eligible to enlist. About 8,000 permanent immigrants join the armed forces each year and about 29,000 non-citizens are currently serving in the U.S. military.
This new pilot program will open the armed forces to certain skilled temporary immigrants if they have lived in the U.S. for a minimum of two years, have not left the country for longer than 90 days during that time, can pass a rigorous background check, and can pass an English language test (hooah and FUBAR don't count as part of the word test). Military service will give them the chance to become U.S. citizens in as little as six months.
That promise should be an appealing carrot. Individuals who come to work or study in the U.S. on temporary visas and wish to become citizens face an uncertain and long path, often lasting more than a decade. Citizenship can be revoked, however, if the enlistees do not complete 4-6 years of service honorably.
The program will be limited to 1,000 enlistees nationwide in its first year, mostly in the Army. Recruiters will begin in New York City where they will target speakers of more than 35 languages, including Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Igbo, Kurdish, Nepalese, Pashto, Russian, and Tamil. They also plan to recruit about 300 medical professionals nationwide.
Predictably, the program has its critics. Some are worried that it could open the door to terrorists who wish to penetrate the armed forces. Others wonder where the loyalties of such immigrants really lie, keeping in mind that they came to the country on “temporary” visas under the promise of returning to their home country. Robert F. Dorr wrote in the Air Force Times, “Residence and citizenship are not commodities. Participation in our society, even in its sacrifices, should not be for sale.”
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