The Uniting American Families Act (UAFA) will be introduced today. There's a press conference on the House side early this afternoon. Via press release from Rep. Nadler:
Today, Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), the ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), the ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, and Representatives John Conyers (D-MI), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Jared Polis (D-CO), Mike Honda (D-CA), Luis Gutierrez (D-IL), Jackie Speier (D-CA), and others will announce the re-introduction of the Uniting American Families Act (UAFA). This overdue legislation would allow gay and lesbian Americans to sponsor their permanent partners for legal residency in the United States, a right currently enjoyed only by married heterosexuals under immigration law. Because the U.S. does not legally recognize gay and lesbian couples and their children as families, many same-sex binational couples are torn apart. The announcement will take place at 1:00pm on Thursday, April 14th at the House Triangle in Washington D.C.Last year, Immigration Equality produced a video about Shirley Tan and Jay Mercado:
Joining the Members will be national LGBT advocates and leaders on LGBT immigration issues, as well as Shirley Tan and Jay Mercado, a same-sex California couple, and their children Joriene and Jashley. The recent immigration plight of the Tan/Mercado family drew national attention and dramatically highlighted the urgency to pass UAFA.
Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) will be introducing UAFA in the Senate.
President Obama and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano could stop the deportations.
Getting rid of DOMA will help these families, too.
