“That Nation which respects and honors its dead, shall ever be respected and honored itself.”
– Brevet Lieut.-Col. Edmund B. Whitman, 1868
The influence of immigrants plays a part in the origins of Memorial Day. It’s been said the day of celebrating those who died serving and defending their country began as a Southern holiday, in honor of African American Freedom. Dating back to May 1865, thousands of formerly enslaved Black community members in Charleston, South Carolina held a ceremony and parade.
According to Dr. David Blight, Sterling Professor of History and of African American Studies at Yale University: “The war was over, and Decoration Day had been founded by African Americans in a ritual of remembrance and consecration.” (Attributed to his article “The First Decoration Day.”)
Three years later, in1868, General John Logan, leader of an organization for Northern Civil War veterans, called for a nationwide day of remembrance. In his words, he called for a day (May 30th) whose purpose was to strew flowers, decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country, declaring it Decoration Day by issuing General Orders No. 11 or the “Memorial Day Act.” The tradition of draping flowers on graves has been recorded from the Classical Roman period to western Europe in the nineteenth century.
In the 20th century, the day of remembrance evolved to commemorate American military personnel who died in all wars from World War I and II, the Vietnam War, the Korean War, and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The federal government continued to recognize Memorial Day through legislative actions such as the Congressional joint resolution in May 1950) as well as 1966, when it officially recognized Waterloo, NY as the “birthplace” of Memorial Day. In 1971, the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, designated Memorial Day a national holiday and moved it from May 30th to the last Monday in May.
Flowers of charity, peace, and devotion …
Place on the graves of our heroes the laurels
Which their unfaltering valor has won!
Paul Lawrence Dunbar (1872–1906) from Ode to Memorial Day
In many ways, the true intention of Memorial Day is honor, remembrance and prayer for permanent peace.
Service Members and Immigration
As a recognition of service members, their commitment and sacrifice to their country, the US government extends citizenship and naturalization to service members and their close relatives who are natives of other countries.
For service members in the US armed forces, there is eligibility for naturalization under special provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).
The US government also recognizes the importance of service members and their family support system. For spouses, these are special considerations for immigration that include expedited naturalization, expedited processing, overseas naturalization, and accommodations for adjustment of status. For children of service members, there may be the opportunity to automatically acquire citizenship under section 320 of the INA. And for certain children of service members who have not already acquired citizenship (under INA 320), they can become naturalized under section 322 of the INA while overseas. Information is available on the USCIS website.
If you are a US service member and considering expedidated immigration options for your family members, please contact us for a consultation. Our United States immigration attorneys are licensed to practice immigration law in all 50 states and at United States consulates and embassies across the globe!