As families and communities came together across America to celebrate our nation’s values of freedom, security and opportunities. We should all remember that our freedoms are secured by those who have fought, and continue to fight, to maintain our nation’s safety. With our privileges comes a solemn duty as Americans to exercise our civic responsibility to stand up for the values that make America strong. I am joined by my fellow immigration attorneys proudly supporting our men and women in uniform, especially those who are immigrants and the children of immigrants.

My colleagues and I work to protect these vulnerable families and the service members and veterans who love them. Every day, service members seek our help to keep their families together. Sometimes it is the spouse of the service-member who was brought to the United States as a child and is now raising the couple’s American-born children while the service-member deploys. Sometimes it is a father or mother who worked hard and sacrificed so their child could succeed and join the military. But one common thread runs through all these cases — an American service-member or veteran, sworn to protect and defend our nation, who sees his or her family threatened at home despite the fact that they have protected us.

Providing protection to the families of active duty and veteran military personnel not only helps to ensure military readiness, but also demonstrates to the men and woman in uniform that we as a nation appreciate their service.

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That is why we were deeply troubled to hear that the Trump administration is threatening to rescind a policy called Military Parole in Place. This policy was implemented by the Department of Homeland Security nine years ago at the request of both Republicans and Democrats in Congress, including Vice President Pence himself.

It allows immediate relatives of U.S. military personnel and veterans to apply on a case-by-case basis for temporary status in the United States even if they entered the U.S. without legal authorization.

Military Parole in Place allows our service members to deploy overseas to fight for our country without fear that they may not have a family to welcome them home. It allows these brave men and women to focus on their military mission, unburdened by the fear of losing a spouse, a child, or a parent to deportation at the hands of their own government.

This policy costs taxpayers next to nothing, but provides our military members and veterans with the security of knowing that their families are safe while they defend our country. Military Parole in Place is not “amnesty” or an abuse of our immigration laws. Rather, it is one small but meaningful way our government tells our men and women in uniform that their sacrifice for our freedom is respected and valued.

The misguided decision to end Military Parole in Place breaks faith with the patriotic soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines who joined the military not to enrich themselves, but to protect this nation and their families. The administration’s decision to end Military Parole in Place frays the fabric of our most vulnerable military families. It needlessly undermines our military’s readiness for no justifiable reason and comes at a time when our forces are still actively fighting a 17-year long war in Afghanistan and combating terrorism in the Middle East.

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These brave souls volunteered “to support and defend our Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic,” even at a time when our military fell short of meeting its recruiting needs. We should honor their commitment, not threaten their loved ones.

As we celebrate our nation’s independence, we owe it to the men and women charged with our nation’s defense to ask difficult and sometimes uncomfortable questions. Sometimes it means asking ourselves, “What do we mean as a nation when we tell our men and women in uniform, ‘Thank you for your service’?”

Surely their commitment to the defense of our freedoms is worth more than an occasional parade or a 10 percent discount off a meal. “Thank you for your service” should mean, “You protect(ed) our freedoms. That is enough for us. For that, we will protect your family, for they are now as much of the fabric of our nation as the red and white stripes and the blue field of stars on our flag. Your service has earned that reward.”

We call on all Americans, our leaders in Congress, as well as the Trump administration, to leave the current Military Parole in Place policy alone, and to amend this fiscal year’s National Defense Authorization Act to provide permanent protection for these military families. The men and women of our military protect our freedoms and our families. It is not too much for us as Americans to insist that our government protect theirs.

Martin Lester is an immigration attorney based in Tennessee and Chair of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) Military Assistance Program.