UAFA Coalition Support
Posted on 07/15/2010 @ 05:49 PM
Immigration Equality was proud to stand beside members of Congress and a coalition of 37 LGBT, immigration, faith, and civil rights groups at today's press conference on Capitol Hill as part of a united front for inclusive comprehensive immigration reform.
Immigration Equality’s press release with statements from members of Congress for the press conference can be found here.
In addition, Immigration Equality interns Jenn Hall and Deborah Velez Cardec worked hard to post live coverage of each speaker’s points (in English and Spanish!) on Twitter, but members of our UAFA working group also had strong statements reiterating the urgency of this issue and in support of immigration reform that includes LGBT binational families.
You can read excerpts from some of these organizations and link to their press releases for today’s press conference below.
Finally, if you weren’t able to follow our live Twitter updates of the press conference, check out Becca Shenk’s recap of the press conference at Immigration: It’s Our Community.
“We are grateful that this powerful coalition is standing together to help fix our broken immigration system,” said Geoff Kors, executive director of Equality California. “California’s elected leaders have already endorsed the Uniting American Families Act, urging our U.S. Congressional leaders to act quickly to end the grave inequities facing binational couples and their families. We hope this vital legislation passes soon, so that no more families headed by same-sex couples are torn apart.” Read Equality California’s entire press release here.
Joe Solmonese, President of HRC, released the following statement: “Our nation should bring families together, not tear them apart, yet same-sex, bi-national couples are too often forced to separate because the government views them as strangers under the law. For far too long, leaders have ignored the devastating real-life consequences for these couples imposed by our current immigration policies. Family reunification is a primary goal of our immigration system but our government fails to accomplish this basic objective for thousands of loving same-sex couples.” Read the entire HRC press release here.
The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force reiterated its call for passage of the Uniting American Families Act, noting that, "U.S. immigration policy is supposed to be based on the principle of bringing and keeping families together, but the system is broken. Instead of unification, the policy often results in painful separation of loved ones. This must change." Read the rest of the Task Force's press release here.
Karen Narasaki, president and executive director of the Asian American Justice Center, released the following statement: “AAJC joins congressional leaders here today in an urgent call to action for support of legislation that addresses the broken family immigration system…Everyday that Congress delays in passing legislation addressing the plight of families, U.S. citizens and green card holders are put in the untenable position of either having to separate or risk having their loved ones being deemed illegal immigrants. The discrimination these LGBT families face undermines our most basic American values of family, equality and justice.”
The Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations’ was unequivocal in its support of UAFA: “The Unitarian Universalist Association joins the Uniting American Families Act (UAFA) coalition in urging the swift passage of comprehensive immigration reform legislation that includes lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) immigrants and their families. Our faith teaches us that we are all members of one human family. We stand on the side of love with all immigrant families to call for humane and comprehensive immigration reform.”
From Michael Mitchell, National Stonewall Democrats Executive Director: “By including UAFA in a comprehensive immigration reform bill, the United States can truly live up to the ‘melting pot’ moniker that has encouraged foreign nationals to begin new lives in the United States for generations. As a society of immigrants, we cannot stand idly by while immigration rules discriminate against LGBT Americans and their binational families”
South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT) “commends members of Congress who stand here today in support of such inclusive legislation and urges Congress to ensure that just and humane immigration reform includes provisions for LGBT families."
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