Main image of article Zuckerberg Plans Hackathon to Spur Immigration Reform
Continuing its efforts to focus attention on immigration reform, Mark Zuckerberg’s political advocacy group FWD.us plans a hackathon for tech-savvy undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children. hackathonAt the hackathon, tech luminaries such as Zuckerberg, LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman, DropBox founder Drew Houston and Groupon’s Andrew Mason will work alongside the young participants. “Each team will create a project or application that could help supporters share stories, contact members of Congress or show family and friends why they want meaningful immigration reform,” according to the hackathon’s website. See our special report on H-1Bs The hackathon is scheduled to run Nov. 20-21 at LinkedIn’s headquarters in Mountain View, Calif. Travel expenses will be covered for select applicants. "There's been a lot of delay and too little action coming from Washington this month,” FWD.us President Joe Green told the Los Angeles Times. “We hope that momentum coming from our hackathon -- and the technology it creates -- can help move immigration reform forward." Zuckerberg has talked about being spurred to action after working with a group of middle schoolers. When asked what they’re most afraid of, one boy said he feared being unable to attend college because he is undocumented. “We talk about high-skilled H1-Bs and full comprehensive immigration reform as if they are two separate issues,” Zuckerberg said at an event in August. “But anyone who knows immigration knows that they’re not.”