http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/30/us/30immig.html?_r=3
This article tells the story of a
same-sex couple, an American man and a Venezuelan, who were ecstatic to finally
be legally married in the state of Connecticut
and start their lives together.
Normally, under
immigration law an American citizen can petition for legal residency for a
spouse. However unfortunately for this couple, this only stands true if the
spouse is not the same sex. After being denied legal residency under the
Defense of Marriage Act, they now faced the threat of deportation.
I came across this article and guest
speaker Jordan Garcia’s lecture about GLBTQI issues and immigration came to
mind. Before this lecture, I had never considered how many people identify as
both GLBTQI and as an immigrant to this country, and the added discriminations
that they must face. This
article was particularly interesting to me because it brought to life the
scenarios and issues we discussed during class that seemed so unbelievable and
shocking to me at the time they were difficult for me to fully comprehend.
This story had a happy
ending, as federal immigration officials agreed to his request to close the
deportation proceedings. Immigration lawyers and gay rights advocates said
the decision in this case could open the door to the cancellation of
deportations for other immigrants and represented a significant shift in policy. This article reassured me that we are making positive changes
in this country, and these changes are being recognized and celebrated by many
people, and how people like Jordan Garcia and groups such as CFIR really are
making a difference. However, although this couple’s story has a happy ending,
it served as a reminder to me that although we are making some progress, we are still not addressing the underlying
issue of whether same-sex marriages should be recognized by the federal government.
I love this! This is completely similar to the skit my group and I put on...the gay couple from China who were facing deportation because they could not get married. I totally agree...a story like this is evidence that progress is being made. Slowly but surely!
ReplyDeleteI also think it is really interesting to see the exact issue that Jordan Garcia's organization works towards. I feel like a lot of us had probably not made any sort of connection between the GLBTQI community and the immigrant community in the United States prior to his discussion with us, and to see the linkage between these two groups in a news story is not only really interesting but hopefully could help to spur more alliances similar to the one seen in Jordan's organization.
This is definitely an interesting piece and one I very much appreciate the NYT covering. However, like you mention, this one does have a happy ending (at least in terms of not being physically separated) which many of the stories' of thousands of others do not.
ReplyDeleteYou also mention how you never realized how many people identify as both LGBTQI and as an immigrant (documented or not) and this made me think of another compounding issue that I came to realize last quarter after interviewing an undocumented immigrant living here in Denver: HIV positive status. The man I spoke with is not only a homosexual, undocumented immigrant living in the United States but also lives with HIV. This sort of situation, which is by no means uncommon, proves incredibly complex and dangerous as many undocumented immigrants constantly fear deportation and may be unable or scared to seek medical treatment, not to mention the fact that they do not qualify for medical insurance because of their unauthorized status. This an in issue definitely worth considering (and one I wish Jordan spoke a little more about) when thinking concurrently about LGBTQI issues and immigration in the United States.