Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook, is pushing the U.S. Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform. According to him, this is one of the biggest civil rights issues. He stated in an ABC News interview that he helped to found the immigration advocacy group Forward.us, after an undocumented child told that he will not be going to college due to his status in the country.
He said that though these children are undocumented, they have grown up in the United States and are very talented. They do not know their home countries and believe that the United States is their home. They do not have the opportunities that the other Americans enjoy and it is not right to deny them the rights they deserve.
Many enter into the country illegally just because they want to work and help their families. Such workers also contribute to the country. He said that the country must create a legal path for such individuals who seek to work in the United States.
According to Zuckerberg, the country has to attract the most talented people and that would also help the United States to remain competitive. He said that he, as an entrepreneur, is an optimistic person. He wants the U.S. Congress to pass immigration reform and he says that a vast majority of Americans are in favor of immigration reform. Zuckerberg also outlined the economic importance of immigration reform.
He brought together a group of DREAMers, young undocumented immigrants, for a “DREAMer Hackathon” to “hack” immigration reform. These young undocumented immigrants split into small groups and pushed the U.S. Congress to pass immigration reform by building technology. He said that these DREAMers, though they are children of undocumented immigrants, can become entrepreneurs in future.