AOL Latino

Foreign-born soldiers play a special role in the military. The United States is a global power, and to project that power effectively, the military needs soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines with diverse backgrounds-including the ability to speak many different languages and understand other cultures and societies. In the fight against terrorism, immigrants enhance the military by understanding the languages and societies in which our troops are fighting. That's because most native-born Americans lack the linguistic and cultural expertise needed for mission success in countries such as and .

Immigrants also help preserve the all-volunteer force. In wartime, it is especially difficult for the U.S. Armed Forces to find enough qualified people-particularly when the military must compete for recruits with other government agencies and the private sector. If the armed forces were to refuse immigrant enlistments, they would not meet their need for highly qualified enlistees. Even a draft would not provide a ready source of recruits who speak Arabic, Dari, Pashto, and other strategic languages.

Immigrant soldiers have been critical to American success in every war. They have been eligible to enlist since the Revolutionary War and have served with great distinction. Alfred Rascon was an undocumented immigrant from who served in the military and won the Medal of Honor during the Vietnam War. He later became a citizen. General John Shalikashvili, the former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, came to the from shortly after World War II. Raphael Peralta, an immigrant from who joined the US Marines as soon as he received his legal residency and sacrificed himself for his comrades during the battle for Fallujah, may become only the most recent of a long line of immigrants to receive the nation's highest award for military valor.

Serving in the military is a time-honored path to citizenship. Through military service, immigrants prove their allegiance to their new homeland and integrate more quickly into American society. Their service carries on a proud and unquestioned tradition in our nation of immigrants.

*Margaret Stock is an Attorney admitted in Alaska and member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association; Lieutenant Colonel in the Military Police Corps, U.S. Army Reserve, assigned as an Associate Professor in the Department of Social Sciences at the U.S. Military Academy, West Point, New York. The opinions expressed in this report are the author's and do not necessarily represent the opinions of the U.S. Military Academy, the Department of the Army, the Department of Defense, or any other government agency.