On Sunday, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Americans – and their allies – will travel from nearly every corner of the country to converge on Capitol Hill and call on lawmakers to support full equality for the LGBT community. The event, named the National Equality March, comes on the heels of growing calls for the federal government to pick up the pace on civil rights legislation, such as recognition for LGBT couples, repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” and finally passing an inclusive employment non-discrimination act. Organizers say they are expecting tens of thousands – if not hundreds of thousands – of participants for the event.
The couple, who recently married in Connecticut and bought a home in Washington, D.C., will not be in the capital on Sunday. Instead, they will be packing Joe’s belongings. Under federal law, Steve and Joe are no longer allowed to live together in the country they call home.
Joe arrived in the United States nearly a decade ago on a visa which allowed him to attend a university in the U.S. and earn his doctorate . . . with the help of a scholarship from the American government. When he finished his studies, he then went to work, putting his education to use, in the United States as well. He received a work visa for that purpose, too.
But earlier this year, the recession hit home for Joe. Despite assurances that his job was safe, he was nonetheless laid off, and his work visa was placed in jeopardy . . . . just days before his green card was expected to arrive. Suddenly, Steve and Joe were faced with the very real prospect of being torn apart. Because they are gay – and not an opposite-gender couple – Steve cannot sponsor Joe for residency in the United States, despite the fact that they have been together for 9 years, are legally married in Connecticut (and have a marriage that D.C. will now recognize) and bought a home together, too.
So while Steve told me over the weekend that he wishes he and Joe could be in Washington to march, they’ll be with Steve’s family, preparing for Joe’s departure instead.
The couple have sold their Washington home, just a few months are finalizing its purchase. And they have paid for Joe’s ticket out of the country. He is scheduled to leave on October 23.
In a story broken today inMelanie Nathan’sblog, a private bill has been introduced in Congress on behalf of Shirley Tan. Melanie reports “When I spoke to Jay [Shirley's partner] today she was crying with joy and said the whole family including the boys were absolutely overwhelmed with emotion.”
The immediate impact of the bill will be that Shirley Tan should not be deported until the end of this Congress in December 2010. Actual passage of the private bill is unlikely. So the only guarantee that Shirley will not be torn from her partner and children is passage of the Uniting American Families Act (UAFA).
Kudos to Senator Feinstein and Rep. Speier of California for their advocacy on behalf of their constituents Shirley Tan, Jay Mercado, and their family.
Shirley Tan and Jaylynn “Jay” Mercado are featured in this week’s People magazine, under the headline “Gay Mom Faces Deportation.” The article is a very sympathetic portrait of a family that is being ripped apart solely because Jay, an American citizen, cannot sponsor Shirley for a green card. This terrific coverage shows how truly mainstream gay and lesbian immigrant families are. Hopefully People’s 44 million readers will join the chorus calling for passage of the Uniting American Families Act.
Congresswoman Jackie Speier (D-CA-12) successfully reached out to immigration officials and asked to delay the deportation of Shirley Tan so she can assemble more facts on Shirley’s case.
While this action will delay Shirley’s deportation for a few weeks, passage of the Uniting American Families Act (UAFA) will be necessary to ensure that Jaylynn “Jay” Mercado and Shirley can keep their family intact in their home in Pacifica, CA.
Immigration Equality commends Congresswoman Speier’s support for the right of Shirley and Jay and their children to stay together, as well as her support for the rights of thousands of binational lesbian and gay couples nationwide through her cosponsorship of UAFA.
As readers of this blog know too well, barring a miracle, the family of American citizen Jaylynn Mercado will be ripped apart on Friday when her partner of 23 years is forced to leave the United States. The San Francisco Chronicle editorial gets it exactly right: the problem is that our immigration law does not recognize Shirley and Jay as a family because they are a lesbian couple, and the solution is to pass the Uniting American Families Act.
Immigration Equality released this press release today about a family threatened with being split apart because of discriminatory immigration laws. We hope the press will generate U.S. government interest in staying the deportation, and understanding of the need for passage of the Uniting American Families Act to stop the destruction of our families.
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CALIFORNIA — Immigration Equality today spoke out about a California family that may soon be torn apart. Due to immigration laws that discriminate against lesbian and gay couples, Shirley Tan will likely be deported April 3, separating her from her life partner Jay Mercado, their twelve-year-old twin sons, and Jay’s mother, for whom Shirley is the primary caretaker. The deportation will send Shirley back to the Philippines, where she was a victim of extreme violence.
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“From the moment my sons were born we have never been apart. It’s tearing me apart to have to leave without them,” said Shirley.
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Unlike married straight Americans, Jay cannot sponsor her life partner for immigration. The Uniting American Families Act (UAFA) would remedy this discrimination against gay and lesbian Americans and allow them to sponsor their partners for immigration. The bill, introduced by Sen. Patrick Leahy in the Senate and Rep. Jerrold Nadler in the House, has 107 additional cosponsors in the Senate and House.
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Shirley and Jay are also seeking a private bill from their members of Congress for a stay of deportation, so that they can stay together in the U.S. or have time to make plans to uproot their family and move together to another country.
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“Once again a family is on the verge of being torn apart because U.S. immigration laws discriminate against gays and lesbians,” said Immigration Equality Policy Director Julie Kruse. “We hope the U.S. government takes immediate steps to keep Shirley and Jay and their children and parents together, and that Congress passes the Uniting American Families Act so the destruction of our families ends.”
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Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA-12) and Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), who represent Shirley and Jay in Congress, have cosponsored the Uniting American Families Act.
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“Shirley Tan’s unacceptable situation is just one example of why Congress must pass immigration equality legislation. The Uniting American Families Act, which I co-sponsored, will allow lesbian and gay Americans to sponsor their permanent partners for residency in the United States,” said Rep. Jackie Speier. “In the near term, I am confident that any official who examines the facts in Shirley Tan’s case will come to the conclusion that this hard-working mother of two should not be sent to a country where she has no support network and was the victim of a horrific act of violence.”
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Victoria Neilson, Immigration Equality’s Legal Director, stated, “There may be no options for this family under existing law. How can they explain to their children that the U.S. Government does not consider them a family?”
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This week, the White House issued a statement about the Uniting American Families Act, saying “[President Obama] thinks Americans with partners from other countries should not be faced with a painful choice between staying with their partner or staying in their country.”
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37 thousand couples across the nation face similar circumstances.
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Immigration Equality is a national organization fighting for equality under U.S. immigration law for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and HIV-positive individuals.
Obama supports inclusion of UAFA in Comprehensive Immigration Reform, as indicated today in a quote in a Bay Windows article:
Asked about Obama’s stance on UAFA [the Uniting American Families Act] and the likelihood of its inclusion in comprehensive immigration legislation, White House spokesman Shin Inouye said in a statement that: “The president thinks Americans with partners from other countries should not be faced with a painful choice between staying with their partner or staying in their country. We will work closely with Congress to craft comprehensive immigration reform legislation.”
Senator John Kerry (D-MA) also indicated hopes that UAFA could move, citing the fact that the ending of the statutory HIV travel and immigration ban was attached to PEPFAR legislation last summer:
I can’t tell you today how that legislative fight will shape up especially in 2009 when you’ve got so many legislative fires burning. But I’m very optimistic that this common sense legislation will get done at the right moment. It’s frustrating as hell, but it takes time and you have to find the moment legislatively to get it done. Persistence counts. Look at an issue like the draconian HIV travel ban we finally ended last year – we couldn’t pass it as a stand-alone bill, but [Oregon Senator] Gordon Smith and I worked it in the Foreign Relations Committee, got it included in PEPFAR, and President Bush signed it into law. You have to work it from multiple angles, and that’s what I’m determined to do.
UAFA currently has 94 cosponsors in the House and eighteen in the Senate. Recent new cosponsors include freshman Senators Kirstin Gillibrand (D-NY) and Jeff Merkley (D-OR).
Breakthrough TV’s terrific “Homeland Guantanamos” video game included a character based on an Immigration Equality client. They have now posted the video interview that was contained in the game as a freestanding piece – it’s worth watching.
The Wisconsin State Journal has this great story about a binational couple, Pamela Hathaway and Lucie Ferrari, and the UAFA:
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“We try and bring some normalcy to our situation,” Hathaway said. “But what’s become normal now is really absurd if you think about it.”
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Hathaway also calls it absurd that she is being forced to choose between her spouse and her country. But she is currently packing their belongings and quitting her job as a neighborhood organizer so she can move to Canada to be with Ferrari.
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A year ago Ferrari left her post as a popular French teacher at Sun Prairie High School, where she is so missed the school has held her job in case she can return. Hathaway is seeking renters for their South Side home, hoping they will be able to legally return to Madison one day.
