Gutierrez Says “No Future CIR bill without UAFA”
By Julie Kruse on 05/27/2010 @ 07:56 PM
At a press conference Monday in Chicago, Congressman Luis Gutierrez reiterated his call from last week that moving forward, any comprehensive immigration reform (CIR) legislation must include the Uniting American Families Act. He stressed that any future CIR bill must include UAFA when it is introduced. Congressmen Jared Polis and Mike Quigley joined him at the podium, urging inclusive reform. Several local Chicago LGBT and immigration organizations stood with them, and members of binational couples told their family stories. Local LGBT officials including Alderman Tom Tunney and Metropolitan Water Reclamation District Commissioner Debra Shore also attended.
After the press conference, Immigration Equality met with several of the Chicago binational families and organizations who attended the event, including Association of Latino Men for Action (ALMA), Amigas Latinas, Dyke March organizers promoting the Dream Act, the National Immigrant Justice Center, Lambda Legal, the Latino Policy Forum, and others, to discuss the actions they are taking to promote LGBT inclusion in and support for immigration reform.
These groups and individuals meet regularly in Chicago to coordinate strategy. Their activism with members of Congress, in the Chicago City Council which recently passed a resolution in favor of UAFA, and in the streets is impressive. They serve as an inspiring example of the grassroots efforts across the country to win LGBT immigrant rights.
Congressman Gutierrez repeated his support for gay and lesbian immigrant families in a segment on Telemundo which also featured New York couple Jeff and Arturo and Lambda Legal’s Francisco Duenas.
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