Check out a great interview with Alfredo Quiñones-Hinojosa in this week’s New York Times health section. Dr. Quiñones-Hinojosa is a brain surgeon at Johns Hopkins and a graduate of Harvard Medical School. He came to the U.S. 20 years ago as an undocumented teenager; his first job was working in the fields in California.

Some years later, I was sitting at a lunch table with colleagues at Harvard Medical School. Someone asked how I’d come to Harvard. “I hopped the fence,” I said. Everyone laughed. They thought I was joking.

Dear Friends:
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The thrilling news from the California Supreme Court marks a tremendous step forward for same-sex couples in America.  For binational couples, however, the fight is not over.

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Unfortunately, marriage in California will not provide immigration rights to same-sex couples in the short term.

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Immigration Equality will keep fighting for equality for same-sex binational couples for as long as necessary.
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Will you celebrate the victory in California by making a donation to help pass the Uniting American Families Act?
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Until our marriages are recognized by the federal government, Immigration Equality will keep fighting to change the United States’ immigration law.  For 40,000 same-sex binational couples, UAFA is the only way to win basic rights.
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In fact, getting married could hurt gay and lesbian foreign nationals in some circumstances.  Before popping the question, read Immigration Equality’s answers about marriage and immigration!

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Personally, our victory in California has made me more determined to win than ever.  If you feel the same passion in your heart that I do, join me by making a contribution right now.
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UAFA will pass, but together we will pass it sooner!
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In unity,
Rachel B. Tiven

Yesterday, was our final day of lobbying in Washington, DC and what an incredible week it was as people in same-sex binational relationships and their families told their Members of Congress about the real life consequences of immigration law and demanded change. Members of Congress and their staff were sincerely moved by our stories and found it impossible agree with the current policy.

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From the beginning we told you that we our targets were tough but their support is important as we move the bill forward. Well, we had the tough meeting, demanded change and we will see who stands where. We will have a complete wrap-up next week but for now I can tell you that our collective efforts were a success.

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Immigration Equality facilitated the actions during Lobby Week but the success belongs to those of you answered the call to action. Whether you called or wrote to your Members of Congress, recruited your friends and family to join the fight, contacted your local papers, traveled to Washington, DC or signed the petition, you were a vital part of the success of Lobby Week.

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Thanks for all of your work and please check back for a more detailed report next week. Please visit our action center to find out how you can continue to help pass UAFA.

Morning everyone.

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Same-sex binational couples from around the country and Immigration Equality’s staff are here in DC getting ready for our first day of meetings with Members of Congress.

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If you are not in DC, you can still help pass the UAFA.

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Today, we are meeting with Members from New York, Maryland, Illinois, and Pennsylvania WE NEED YOU TO CONTACT EVERYONE YOU KNOW IN THOSE STATES AND ASK THEM TO TAKE ACTION ON THE UAFA. You may direct them to the UAFA Action Center - our new eTools makes it easy to take action.

As many of you know, seven states are being targeted during Lobby Week - NEXT WEEK, Alabama, California, Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, New York, and Wisconsin.

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A tremendous amount of outreach into the target states coupled with the new eTools in our UAFA Action Center have moved thousands of people to take action.

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Tracking the number of actions being taken is adding a little bit more fun to my work, as a horse race has developed between Maryland, Wisconsin, and California.

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Right now Wisconsin is leading , but at this point anyone can win - including your state.

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PUT YOUR STATE IN THE LEAD: Take a minute to take action then step beyond personal action and move your friends and family to register their support for UAFA. Our UAFA Action Center make it incredibly easy.

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There is no prize but I will post the winner after Lobby Week -NEXT WEEK

Here is another story that Members of Congress will hear during Lobby Week - NEXT WEEK.

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I personally love this story because Silas, the writer, clearly talk about how forcing him and his partner into exile will affect the United States. The fact is, when this country forces people into exile there is a tremendous loss; we need to boldly communicate this to Congress.

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If you cannot join us in DC next week, visit our UAFA Action Center and find out how you can take action locally.

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In 2005, after two years spent teaching 6th grade in inner-city Los Angeles through Teach for America, I moved to South Africa to pursue a Masters in Public Health at the University of Pretoria. My studies were financed through a full scholarship from Rotary International. This Ambassadorial Scholarship is awarded to future community leaders based on their commitment to advancing peace and understanding around the world. I left the classroom to focus on public health in an effort to address the many health problems preventing my South Central students from achieving at the high levels they were capable of. As part of my research in South Africa, I worked with schools in township (high-poverty) areas to design and implement community-based strategies to address the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
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While in South Africa, I met and fell in love with Gerhard, a 28-year-old, well-established industrial engineer. We quickly began building a life together in South Africa.
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After two years, my grandmother became very ill. Gerhard and I decided to move to the United States to move into her home and take care of her. I found a job working for a non-profit organization improving access to medicines around the world. In order for Gerhard to come to the United States, he enrolled for a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting. He has cashed in all of his savings and retirement to pay for his studies. Even though he has a 4.0 grade point average and is volunteering at a prestigious human rights organization, he is not guaranteed a job or any permanency upon graduation. His dwindling savings and our inability to plan for a life in the United States beyond his visa expiration date have put a damper on what should be an exciting experience in a new country.
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I love my country and I am a proud American. I have dedicated my life to working to addressing injustice and inequity all across the United States. It is tremendously painful for me to feel I need to choose between my love of country and my love for my spouse – that is not a choice anyone should be forced to make. United States Immigration law has recognized the damage this choice can do on a personal and community-level and allows Americans to sponsor opposite-gender foreign national spouses for permanent residency. Denying me and Gerhard this right goes against the spirit of that law and it needs to be changed. I am not asking to be given any special rights – only that he be given the same opportunity to prove his suitability for United States permanent residency.
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If the Uniting American Families Act is not passed, Gerhard and I will be forced to leave. Not only will the United States lose me, a highly-educated and committed community advocate, but the also lose Gerhard, a determined accountant who, if given the chance, would contribute greatly to this country’s development. Is that something the United States can afford to do in today’s global economy?
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I urge you to support the UAFA.

Another story of a couple coming to DC Lobby Week.  If you cannot join us, please make sure to view our activist tools that will allow you to participate in the week’s events from your home state.

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 Rita, Margot, & baby Emma

I am a first-generation American, whose parents immigrated to the U.S. in the 1960s from Cairo, Egypt, to escape religious persecution as Christian Armenians.  My parents wanted to raise their family in the U.S. so that they could practice their Christian faith without fear of retaliation and to create a better life for my sister and I.
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Margot and I have been together for 6 years and live in a beautiful, 5-bedroom home built in the historic community of Hancock Park.  She’s a German national who has been living in Los Angeles for the last 4 years, legally, on a student visa.  We recently had a baby girl in September, and our daughter Emma is now 7 months old- she too is an American.
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I own a successful entertainment marketing company in Los Angeles that services all the major movie studios including Warner Bros., 20th Century Fox, Sony, Paramount, DreamWorks, HBO, and Walt Disney.  My business partner and I employ 20 people and we EACH pay about $1.4 million a year in both Federal and State income taxes.
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Margot’s student visa expires this summer and we plan to leave the U.S. and go to Germany on July 23rd, to ensure she does not overstay her visa.  In order to play by the rules, I will reluctantly commute monthly between Germany and Los Angeles in order to keep my thriving L.A. business alive, pay for the expense of two separate households, and spend so much time away from my family, possibly miss my daughter’s first steps.
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I cannot begin to describe the daily anxiety I feel about leaving my business 6,000 miles away to run weeks at a time without me being physically present.  I fear my employees and my movie studio clients will tire of my inaccessibility due to the nine-hour time difference.  At the same time, I also worry about leaving my family in Germany every time I have to go to Los Angeles without them.  What if something bad happens, and I’m 6,000 miles away?  I feel doomed in each direction, as I don’t want to lose my business and I don’t want to lose my family.
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My parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins-all immigrants from Egypt-cannot believe that I must flee the United States in order to keep my little family of three together.  My parents and I thought, all along, that the U.S. represented the freest nation on earth…until now.
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If only the U.S. would recognize my family by passing the Uniting American Families Act, can Margot, my 7 month-old daughter and I be together as a family unit.  As of July 23rd, there will be two American refugees forced to live in exile.  As a first generation American, I have trouble accepting the fact that I am faced with choosing my family over the country I was born in.  How could this be?  This is America, the freest nation in the world…except for my family and me.

Together, we have sent over 1400 letters to 282 Members of Congress in 24 hours, telling them to pass UAFA.

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Fair-minded people across the country are telling their Senators and Congressperson unbelievable stories of families and communities torn apart by the United States’ unfair immigration law; demanding Congress pass UAFA.

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As we enter Lobby Week - May 6, 7, and 8, we must continue to increase the scale of our actions. Please use our new Letter to Congress eTool to contact your Members and invite your friends and family to do the same. 1400 letters in 24 hours is a great start - let’s continue to show our strength.

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UAFA will pass, but together we will pass it sooner.

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Here is an example of the letters Members of Congress are receiving.

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Senator Richard Durbin

309 Hart Senate Bldg.
Washington, DC 20510

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Greetings Senator Durbin,

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Under no circumstances should an American citizen should be forced to live 5,000 miles away from their chosen partner. I compose this letter today on behalf of my son and your constituent, Peter Longwood. Peter is in a committed, loving relationship with his Brazilian partner, Mateo. Peter and Mateo met on the fifth of May in 2004 while Mateo was working in the U.S. on a temporary work visa. They have remained together in a committed sense for nearly four years; however they have physically been torn apart by our countries unfair and unequal immigration law.

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Peter is unable to sponsor Mateo’ citizenship as an opposite sex couple would be able to achieve through marriage. The Immigration and Nationality Act will not allow Peter and Mateo to live together in the U.S. and, in fact, has forced Peter into exile in order to continue their relationship. Peter is now living in Brazil with Mateo as they await immigration reform that will allow them to return to Chicago.

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The lack of equality in our system has caused more than an inconvenience. This has torn Peter from his family, friends, and the country that he loves. Before Peter left the country he was involved in activism to increase awareness about an act in congress that could create greater equality for the estimated 36,000 U.S. same sex bi-national couples. The United American Families Act (UAFA) is the only hope for many of these couples, half of whom are raising children or caring for elderly parents.

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I call on you to not only support the UAFA along with Senator Leahy but also to drive awareness and support of this act among your constituents and fellow Senators.

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I am speaking on behalf of Peter’s family, friends, and the thousands of Chicagoans that became aware of this injustice through articles printed in the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun Times shortly before his exile. We ask that you do your part to create equality for all of our citizens and pave the path for the safe and legal return of Peter Longwood and Mateo to our country.

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Deepest Sincerity,

Peter Sr. and Janice Longwood

Hi all- just wanted to let you know that we put a spam blocker up on the blog today.  If you’ve ever posted a comment to the blog it should not affect you, similarly if you post a comment without a link it should not affect you.  However, if you post a comment with a link, you will have to fill in one of those funny word image captures so we can know you are not a blog robot.
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We really debated doing this because we want to make it as easy as possible for you to read and comment on the material posted on this blog.  However, I get about 100 spam msgs. per day in my inbox and it’s become unwieldy.  So, decided to make it a lot more difficult for the spam bots and perhaps a bit more difficult for some of you who want to comment.  Thanks for bearing with us.  And make sure to keep commenting and telling us what you think and how you feel- we love hearing from you- even if we disagree.  Thanks- ADAM

Immigration Equality has created an online UAFA Action Center, with tools to help you advocate for the passage of the Uniting American Families Act (UAFA). Commit to taking action during Lobby Week: May 6, 7, and 8.
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The UAFA Action Center features new software and webpages that make it easy and simple for you to call and write to Congress, set-up a meeting with your Senators and Congressperson, sign a petition to support the bill, and contact your local newspapers to tell your story. And, once you have taken action it’s very simple for you to help enlist more UAFA supporters, by asking your friends and family to join the fight.
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Complete a Commitment Form to let us know what action you will be able to take. Once you submit the form you will be taken to the UAFA Action Center to complete your commitment using our new tools.
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Here are some of the actions you can take to help pass UAFA, sooner.
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Petition: Register your support for UAFA and ask your friends to join the growing list of people calling for an end to the United States’ discriminatory immigration system.
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Write a Letter to Congress: Personalize a pre-written letter or write your own letter, enter your name and address, and with one click your letter will be sent to your two Senators and Congressperson.
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Write a Letter to the Editor: Write to your local paper and tell your community how the immigration law is harming your family. It’s easy! Enter your zip code, select a local newspaper, insert a few pre-written statements or write your own, then hit send.
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Call Congress: Locate the phone number and call to register your support with your elected officials. This page, complete with talking points, makes calling quick, easy, and effective.
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Schedule an In-District Meeting: This “all in one place” information page houses the details and links you need to schedule a local meeting with your Senators and Congressperson.
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Attend Lobby Week: Join UAFA activists in Washington, DC, to lobby for UAFA. Register and prepare for your visit in very little time.
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During Lobby Week activists from around the country will use these new tools to raise their voices for UAFA. Please join by committing to take action, today. We will pass UAFA, but together we will pass it sooner.