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DREAMer Hackathon: Silicon Valley goes in for immigration reform

Mark Zuckerberg's FWD.us is behind a new initiative that will help illegal immigrants use technology to push for immigration reform.

Silicon Valley’s newest project? Overhaul American immigration law. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and other big-name tech companies, like LinkedIn, Groupon, and Dropbox, are launching the DREAMers Hackathon in November. The event is meant to introduce illegal immigrants to technology and help them push for policy change.

“I think their message will resonate much more because it’s more inclusive,” says Stephen Keppel, who covers economics for Univision.

Keppel says that immigrants make up a large portion of Silicon Valley, and bring fresh ideas and an entrepreneurial spirit. He added that such programs are also great marketing for the tech brands.

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