Leader Pelosi thanks LGBT Binational Families for their Patriotism

By Julie Kruse on 01/19/2012 @ 06:11 PM

“I’m very proud of your efforts and I’m honored to be associated with them.”

Today, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi spoke on a phone call with over one hundred Immigration Equality supporters, most of whom are directly affected by discrimination against LGBT families in immigration law, struggling to keep their families together in the United States.

Leader Pelosi closed her remarks by saying to the audience:

What they (LGBT binational families attending the call) are doing for themselves, for their families, for their loved ones, I know they know they’re doing for our country…When we end discrimination in any way we make our country more American and I thank them for their patriotism. As we all know [addressing] one case at at time, what it means it people’s lives; but it also strengthens our country as we move towards ending discrimination. So I thank you all for doing that. I’m very proud of your efforts and I’m honored to be associated with them.

On building support for the Uniting American Families Act (UAFA) and the Reuniting Families Act which includes UAFA, Leader Pelosi said:

We must continue to build support for legislation: the Uniting [American] Families Act – thank you for your leadership there — and the Reuniting Families Act, both of which I’m proud to cosponsor. I thank my colleagues for their leadership — Barney Frank, Jerry Nadler, and others have been wonderful.

… This week, as we honor Dr. Martin Luther King, I am reminded that he said, “The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice. How beautiful. I believe that this is the case with marriage equality and the LGBT immigration policy. The fight is far from over, but we’ll continue to work towards the day when all American families are treated with respect and viewed equally in the eyes of the law.

On advocating with the Obama administration, Leader Pelosi stated:

I joined several of my colleagues in the House in seeking abeyance for all DOMA-related immigration cases while litigation on DOMA’s constitutionality is pending. I think it’s very important.

Regarding discretionary relief in deportation cases, Leader Pelosi stated:

The administration [is undertaking] a case by case approach; we have urged them to fully consider LGBT family ties as part of their new efforts to prioritize immigration enforcement on those cases that have impacted our national security. That will make a big difference.

On Immigration Equality’s work, and Bradford Wells and Anthony Makk’s case, Leader Pelosi stated:

Thank you for your advocacy and determination, thank you Immigration Equality for bringing us closer to that concept being a dream come true for all Americans, for all America’s families. I thank you for giving me the opportunity to express my appreciation to you for what you do, to receive your thanks that I will explain to my colleagues for what they do, and to just to take the opportunity once again to celebrate the Bradford Wells and Anthony John Makk victory that we had; hopefully it will be a model for how we go forward.

To listen to a recording of the entire Call for Change with Nancy Pelosi and Executive Director Rachel B. Tiven, dial 1-800-977-8002 and then enter *57676248#. For an audio file (MP3) of the entire Call for Change with Nancy Pelosi and Executive Director Rachel B. Tiven, download here.

This Action Updates post reprinted from the Immigration Equality Blog.