Last week Veterans for American Ideals (VFAI) hosted its first-ever Leader Convening, bringing together a bipartisan group of 30 veterans from across the nation to fight for policies consistent with American values.

During the three days of meetings VFAI leaders participated in training and planning sessions, and met with key decision-makers in the Obama Administration and Congress. The issue near and dear to the hearts of many in the group was arguing for continuation of the Special Immigrant Visa program for Afghan allies who served alongside the U.S. military in wartime. The program, which faced new challenges to renewal this year, was ultimately extended for four more years under the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that passed on Thursday. Unfortunately the extension only authorized an additional 1,500 visas, making the passage bittersweet. More than ten thousand Afghans are currently awaiting visas−many forced into hiding after facing threats to their lives and the lives of their families.

Next week VFIA leaders plan to meet with Pentagon officials about a more robust program. “This is strategically really important,” VFAI founder Scott Cooper told the Washington Free Beacon. “That’s what we’re pitching to [the Department of Defense], that this makes strategic sense. We’re always going to rely on local national forces, those kinds of folks, and keeping faith with them is good strategic sense. We’re trying to convince DOD that they’ve got a dog in this fight and they need to embrace it.”

While Congress’s extension of the SIV program is a workable starting point, the language of the legislation limits eligibility for the visa to Afghans who performed a narrow set of jobs. “American service members cannot complete their mission without translators, engineers, security guards, embassy clerks, logisticians, cultural advisors and soldiers who have served with and risked their lives alongside them,” Cooper said in an interview with Stars and Stripes. The current law would bar thousands of Afghans who served with the U.S. military in vital roles.

If you’d like to join the fight to keep our promise to our Afghan allies, we encourage you to write your members of Congress urging them to expand the number of visas. Template letters are available for download here for veterans, and here for civilian allies.

On a lighter note, the VFAI leaders capped their week with a taping of a segment with Full Frontal with Samantha Bee. Be sure to tune to TBS next Monday, December 12th at 10:30 pm to watch Scott Cooper and VFAI Leaders Mac McEachin, Phil Klay, Jess Bell, and Ibrahim Hashi go toe-to-toe with Full Frontal’s Allana Harkin in a hilarious look at how veterans are standing up for American ideals, such as protecting refugees.

Veterans for American Ideals might be the newest celebrities on the block, but we also enjoyed this video arranged by Oxfam America. The video, called “I Hear You,” enlists the help of some of Hollywood’s biggest stars to retell incredibly moving stories of refugees. We continue to elevate voices of refugees and their stories, and we hope that you will, too.

Want to learn how you can be involved in our efforts to raise veteran voices in support of refugees? Find us on Facebook or Twitter, or contact us at [email protected].