Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (AP Photo)

(CNSNews.com) – The 11 million illegal aliens in the U.S. today “crossed our borders like so many before them” yet they don’t have a vote, “but they must have a voice” in the Democratic Party and “our nation,” former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa told the Democratic National Convention Thursday night in Philadelphia.



“They come dreaming of a better place, a place that we all call home, but these 11 million people have no credentials to this hall. They don’t even have a vote, but they must have a voice in our party and our nation,” he said.





Villaraigosa said he was speaking “for 11 million often forgotten people and their families.”



“They work in the hot sun. They put food on our tables even though they often have little for theirs. They build, repair and clean our homes. They take care of our children when they have no one to care for their own,” Villaraigosa said.



“They’re hard-working people toiling in the toughest jobs with little to show for it. They fight in our wars and defend our freedom. They’re God-fearing, faithful and family people. They crossed our borders like so many before them, answering Mother Liberty’s call,” he added.



Villaraigosa said the 11 million illegals come to the U.S. “dreaming of a better place, a place that we all call home, but these 11 million people have no credentials to this hall.”



“They don’t even have a vote, but they must have a voice in our party and our nation,” he said.



“So in this city of brotherly love, we must stand up and fight for these 11 million, for we are our brother’s keeper. We have always been stronger when we integrate, not segregate, when we join hands and work together to solve our challenges,” he said.