US Army Purple Heart veteran forced to self-deport: ‘I just have to drop everything and leave’
US Army Purple Heart veteran forced to self-deport: ‘I just have to drop everything and leave’
The “Thank-you for your service” types currently rallying behind this man I'm guessing?
No. The racism beats out their fervent patriotism.
"Fake news"
They're willing to deport a fucking veteran who took two bullets for his country, they'll deport anyone, including YOU.
Pure unadulterated evil.
Americans have this weird fetish for veterans. Not so much that they would actually treat them decently, though. What people tend to forget is that these people work to maintain the exact same system that screws them over once they are no longer useful.
Veterans were also victims of the orphan crushing machine, usually recruited from impoverished areas with the promise of a stable job, health care, and education. They were once broke high school kids from podunk towns with zero opportunities for upward mobility. I think the left in America is missing a huge opportunity to take advantage of the fetishization of veterans. A few charismatic veterans who espouse a leftist platform can lend a lot of pathos for the cause from the view of the average 'red-blooded American.'
It’s mostly performative.
They love saying it, but they sure hate voting to support them.
American governmental culture fetishizes over the military as a concept in general, while calling out other nations that fetishize over their militaries as bad. Singing the national anthem about bombs bursting at sporting events like that's something to be happy or proud about. The tour of "hey it's military week, everyone dress in fatigue-adjacent colors and some random service members get paraded about" that happens every year. Rich politicians saying poignant words on solemn days thanking service members for their service, to then be whisked away by their security patrol and fleet of bulletproof vehicles to go back to their caviar swimming pools, never having had to even consider, really consider, killing a person, or losing a limb, friend's blood spattered across your face.
America is built on advertising. Unique thoughts need not apply. You're told what to buy, where to buy it, who to hate, who to love, where to live. You're never given any programs to back any of that up. Abortion is bad because it kills children, yet after those children are born, they can just die homeless with no medical care. We are to love our troops while treating them like detritus. We support them with a parade after a mission, then they're on their own. If they die on an "important" mission, well, they're heroes. That term alone, hero. America uses the word hero when we don't want to feel bad that someone volunteered their life for something we were too cowardly to do ourselves.
9/11 first responders, as another example, that Jon Stewart spent a good chunk of his life trying to make the government honor their own deal, and even now, the government is still trying to undo it. People who, of the ones that lived, are already going to have shorter more complicated lives. We don't even have the decency to let this handful of humans live as comfortable (not lavish, without pain) as they can, given what they tried to do to save so many people while buildings and airplanes are crashing down around them. We currently hate the immigrants that pick our food, clean our businesses, lose limbs in meat packing plants, so we can enjoy a $5 hunk of beef at the supermarket, while their children build our cars, so much so that we are willing to violate the Constitution to "get rid" of them in the most cruel way we can think of.
If we even actually followed through on caring about soldiers. If the VA was a temple of success, and veterans actually received proper treatment, care, housing, instead of being abandoned to die in the streets. If the government did one actual thing to back up their claims, instead of market spin. That'd still be a disappointment because we'd be a military-state, but at least it would be truthful, and people would join just the military for the promise of a good life. Instead, it is just a flimsy sham from every direction, trading souls for caviar swimming pools for the few.
About the only thing we are truly consistently good at in the USA is hate, and it has been that way for a long time.
Fuck every Republican piece of shit who enabled this to happen. Fuck all who refused to vote in the most consequential presidential election so far. Fuck everyone who said Harris wasn't worth voting for. We're kicking people out who took a bullet for this country with such callousness and the average American citizen just simply shrugs their their shoulders and carry on. What is wrong with us?
What is wrong with us?
Apathy, hopelessness, ignorance, and, in the case of GOP voters, malice.
“People were saying, ‘You took two bullets for this country. Like you’re more American than most of the Americans living in America,’” he said.
Seems like you should get honorary citizenship at that point. He’s put in the work.
His mistake was working hard and trusting the military would look out for him. He should've found a rich person to marry
per trump he's a "sucker" and a "loser".
Ramos says 38% of the U.S. military are noncitizens, and believes thousands are being deported for non-violent crimes.
Holy shit that's wild. I had no idea the numbers were that high. I always knew the military targeted poor people, but didn't realize how nearly half of them weren't citizens.
Not sure where they're getting that number from, honestly. The actual numbers are MUCH smaller, though still non-neglible.
Tried to dig around a bit, it seems a number the military doesn't keep very good or active track of. Seems to trend in the single percentages though.
I had no idea the numbers were that high.
They're definitely not. First hand experience tells me that when a soldier enlists during in processing they start the process for naturalization. I saw several recruits that came in with me go through the paperwork with a drill instructor. If this 38% is "real" then it must be "all time". But modern military for sure it is not.
I think the 38% number is definitely wrong, maybe even wrong by one order of magnitude.
I tried fact-checking and came up with this:
https://providencemag.com/2018/04/what-a-country-immigrants-serve-us-military-well
Few Americans realize that 65,000 immigrants serve in the US military today. That number includes some 18,700 troops who hold green cards (in other words, legal permanent residents who are not yet naturalized citizens). According to the Pentagon, about 5,000 such residents enlist each year.
Since the total number of the US armed forces is around 1.3 million, it follows that 38% is definitely wrong and the correct number of immigrants is likely around 5%.
I think the 38% number originates from service member naturalization stats or service member family stats and has been mis-interpreted. Can't tell for sure, didn't hire a spy to find out. :)
P.S. Edit: found a secondary source with similar data:
https://www.usafis.org/can-i-join-the-us-military-as-a-green-card-holder/
Approximately 8,000 Green Card holders join the US military each year and around 35,000 are currently serving on active duty.
Since green card holders aren't the only variety of immigrant, the number 65 000 seems plausible.
On the bright side, he hasn't been spirited away to a Salvadorian concentration camp without due process. In Nazi America, that counts for something.
Yet...
The guy embodies everything right with the system. Jumped through all the hoops. “Rehabilitated” himself despite prison. Followed the rules. Became, for a second time, a productive member of society.
And they sent him away after decades here to a country he doesn’t even know.
I can’t even think about the mental gymnastics engaged in by the pro-military repugnicans who also say “if immigrants came here legally they would be fine…” They probably don’t even bother. Just shrug anf move on.
If they're coming after non citizens for drug use how long until they come after citizens for the same? How long until they're rounding up every medical marijuana patient?
All those for profit prisons will start to look empty and lose money.
Some time
What the actual fuck.
In France, if a foreigner serving in the French Foreign Legion was injured in combat, he is automatically declared Français par le sang versé. Meaning French by spilled blood. When he is given medical treatment the first form he is to fill out as soon as he is able is an application of French citizenship which will be automatically granted.
I honestly cannot think of a bigger show of loyalty than that. What kind of impression do they think they are making?
This is a reminder that military service does provide for naturalized citizenship, but it is not automatic. This is not well explained, if at, all by leadership.
At this point, if you’re trying to become a US citizen, you’re a fucking moron. That’s like swimming up to a sinking ship on fire. Few places have a darker future than the US. God I fucking hate this country.
Honestly I'm not sure "service guarantees citizenship" is a good path to go down.
Service guarantees getting fucked
I would like to learn more.
That was the one thing that I appreciated about being assigned as the "medical and unusual yeoman." I may have been a recruit like the rest of them, but my RDCs gave me everyone's paperwork, and told me to make sure that all appointments were made and kept. I guaranteed that all 15 of the enlisted immigrants got that paperwork signed in triplicate, and forwarded to their OOB. I was then a thorn in those OOBs sides emailing them every six months until I got confirmation of US citizenship for all 15 of my shipmates.
Every other thing about that particular duty was an absolute PITA
My squadron had a lot of immigrants in it for how small it was, and they were all better sailors than most. I'm glad that some immigrants had someone like you fighting for them, it's not an easy path to take
Thank you for your service in this particular way.
One of my best neighbors is a former Navy nurse from a dirt as poor part of Jamaica 🇯🇲. He immigrated this way. Amazing guy and has a great family. My daughter and his daughter are best friends.
I learned this by asking questions after Starship Troopers