Marriage Equality USA

Bi-National / Immig. Community

Chris Waddling

Bi-National Couples Community Liaison

June 3rd, 2009 U.S. Senate UAFA Hearings: Shirley Tan; Gordon Stewart; Julian Bond (NAACP); Christopher Nugent (ABA); Roy Beck; Jessica Vaughn; Sen. Jeff Sessions; Sen. Chuck Schummer; and Sen. Arlen Specter

Upcoming Event: "Leaving My Found Eden: A Poetography Exhibit",12/1/09 - 01/15/10 at the SF LGBT Community Center, Gallery 301, 1800 Market St., San Francisco, CA

Newsflash: December 15, 2009

On the day that the Washington, D.C. Council overwhelmingly approved marriage equality for its LGBT citizens and their families, Congressman Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) introduced an immigration reform proposal (CIR ASAP Act) in the House of Representatives that excludes lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender families.

http://www.immigrationpolicy.org/sites/default/files/docs/CIR_ASAP_2009_Summary.pdf

While the bill contains nods to other hot-button issues, such as a path to legalizing existing illegal immigrants, it blatantly excludes the LGBT families currently in immigration purgatory, giving a definition of "family unity" that is clearly heterosexual-only. In the end, Rep. Gutierez capitulated to significant pressure from conservative religious organizations in crafting his final version of his bill. It's a shame, really, since the congressman is a cosponsor of both the Uniting American Families Act, or UAFA (H.R. 1024), and the Reuniting Families Act, or RFA (H.R. 2709), both of which are unequivocally pro-LGBT family.

Background: There is a great lack of knowledge, even amongst well-informed progressives, of the rigors and stress that befall those of us in binational same-sex relationships. Few realize that even for people in states like Massachusetts or Connecticut where same-sex marriages are allowed, those in binational relationships are still forced to make extreme choices, including years of lying to the federal government in marrying someone of the opposite gender who will sponsor their green card application, remaining illegally past the end of their visas, or returning to their home country, with or without their partner. Immigration laws are so draconian and discriminatory that transgendered people cannot even sponsor their opposite gender spouse for permanent residency as other heterosexual couples can, simply because they were not born of opposite gender. The federal government's inability to change these laws or to recognize same-sex marriages as equal to those of opposite-gender marriages for immigration and other purposes stem entirely from the enactment in 1996 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Attempts to gain immigration rights equal to those of married couples through the Uniting American Families Act (UAFA) have routinely stalled in Congress under entirely bogus arguments. As a member of the Marriage Equality USA team, it is my goal to help educate others to the unique fight that binational couples are engaged in, and to see that the repeal of DOMA and the passage of the UAFA become a reality.

Did you know? Between 2003 and 2008, 344,460 Americans sponsored their spouse for permanent residency. Zero of those were same-sex partners. With 36,000 Americans unable to sponsor their partner because of unequal immigration laws, how can anyone think that this is fair?

Recently, Marriage Equality USA has partnered with Out4Immigration and Love Exiles to use our combined strengths and resources to push ever harder to get UAFA passed. A letter writing campaign by O4I is underway, and may have contributed to at least one congressman signing onto the bill. Our latest tactic is to call on President Obama to immiediately enact UAFA through executive order. I have recently written an Op-Ed in the San Jose Mercury News urging him to do just that.

About me: I moved to the U.S. from Canada in 1994 to attend graduate school in Hawaii. I’ve also lived in Albany, New York and San Francisco, where I currently live. During this time, I’ve lived in the U.S. on a variety of visa types, including F-1 Student, TN, and H1-B work visas. My current visa expires in 2010, but I am extremely fortunate to have an employer who is willing to sponsor me for permanent residency. Without his support, and because of the inequities in our immigration laws, at the end of my visa I would have to leave the home, job, family and life that I have created in this country over the past fifteen years.

My partner of 7 years, now my husband, Tim Chan, and I were married in San Francisco in 2008. In the years before our wedding, I volunteered with a local AIDS charity, Under One Roof, for four years, and raised funds for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation by participating in the AIDS Marathon Training Program. As our wedding approached under the pall cast by the impending vote on Prop 8, I became more involved in proposition politicking, volunteering for the ‘No on 8’ campaign. After our wedding, in the lead-up to the election, I found myself explaining to people the unique restrictions that bi-national same-sex couples face, including immigration issues, prolonged separation from family, and the stress and hardship that this places on us. I realized that if friends and family don’t know the extra limitations that laws like DOMA place on bi-national couples, then I needed to find a way to help educate them, and I look forward to using my position with Marriage Equality USA to ensure that our unique message is heard and to connect with other bi-national couples to help them and the families they have created to remain together in the U.S.