Gay Rights, Meet Immigration Reform

By • on May 27, 2009

Here’s a bill gaining support in Congress that takes two of the most heated political topics – immigration reform and same-sex marriages – and combines them to create a relatively mild but still controversial reform. The Uniting American Families Act of 2009 would amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to allow U.S. citizens to sponsor same-sex permanent partners to immigrate legally to the U.S. and live and work here permanently.

The bill is being sponsored in the House of Representatives by Rep. Jerrold Nadler [D, NY-8] and 102 other Democratic co-sponsors. In the Senate, it is sponsored by Sen. Patrick Leahy [D, VT] with another 20 Democrats listed as co-sponsors. The Senate bill is S. 424.

In 2004, the Government Accountability Office conducted a study and found that there are 1,138 federal statutory provisions in which marital status is a factor in determining benefits, rights, and privileges. Because of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act, these rights are provided only to heterosexual couples. Sponsoring spouses for immigration purposes is just one of these 1,138 rights.

Likewise, this is just a small part of the larger immigration debate. In 2007, Congress and the Bush administration tried to enact comprehensive immigration reform legislation, which would have provided a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants, increase border security, create a new guest worker program and more. After a long and unpleasant debate in the Senate, the bill failed to pass cloture and was tabled indefinitely. Since then, smaller immigration reform proposals have been proposed as stand-alone bills in Congress, but so far Congress has treated the immigration topic as toxic and haven’t touched anything related to it. The Uniting American Families Act will probably suffer from falling roughly into this category.

Back to the bill itself. It’s long but simple. Basically it adds the words “or permanent partner” after the word “spouse” everywhere it occurs in the Immigration and Nationality Act. It also defines lays out a definition for “permanent partner”:

‘(52) The term ’permanent partner’ means an individual 18 years of age or older who—

‘(A) is in a committed, intimate relationship with another individual 18 years of age or older in which both parties intend a lifelong commitment;

‘(B) is financially interdependent with that other individual;

‘

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  • Brittanicus

    OVERPOPULATION–HIGHER TAXES– E-VERIFY should be classed as the paramount issue when it comes to illegal immigration. The corporate elitists who are partnered with many corrupt politicians do not live in the real world. The business entities who lobby for cheap labor are isolated from the traffic chaos on our highways. They do not live in the pollution of our cities, amongst the gangs and criminals who have swarmed across the borders. Only mainly the middle class will be subjected to a new push for a second path to citizenship or better known as AMNESTY. This revised so-called immigration reform will sweep across America, without any voice allowed to repudiate it from—THE PEOPLE–who must pay for everything. Business pay NOTHING, nor the farmers and using slave labor at cheap rates without any benefits, that lowers American wages across the board. Here are the issues that voters must consider:

    1. Are Americans expected continually to pay for the hiring practices of businesses and farmers? 2. Why have the agricultural community not advanced in using mechanized machines to harvest crops, when they are well subsidized by government agencies? Sen. Feinstein is reintroducing an AGJOB bill that would allow at least 2 million foreign nation legalization. The issue here is 3. Why are our legislators drafting a 2nd AMNESTY, when the 1986 Simpson/Mazzoli bill was weakened on not even enforced and full of fraud? 4. If another AMNESTY is forced on Taxpayers are they expected to cover the costs of an almost impossible regimen of processing 20 million plus foreign nationals? 5. Who is going to pay for the–CHAIN MIGRATION–for the extended family members who will want to live with newly legalized migrant? Then Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), stated “the borders are now safe enough to take a step forward. We can pass strong, fair, practical and effective immigration reform this year,” he said. Perhaps he should take a trip to the fence and reverse his initial statement. The border is definitely not secure. It's a place of death at the hands of criminal drug cartels that have even infiltrated the American communities. 6. Isolated border sheriff's voices of alarm, fell upon deaf ears for years in Washington, repeatedly stating of their limited manpower, could not stem the tide of drugs crossing our border.

    Our Washington elitists, who are adamant free traders and open border zealots, have not only ruined small Mexican farmers living standards, because of the inception of CAFTA, but now unable to scratch a living have poured across the border along with other impoverished peoples. 7. If millions illegal aliens are legalized, why should honest potential immigrants waiting patiently for years, bother with a employment visa and not just slip past an undermanned, poorly erected border fence? 8. Why are taxpayers forced by mandated law to support hired illegal labor, when businesses pay nothing for them being here. 9. Although not the illegal children's fault, why should our own children suffer under the controversial Dream Act? This gives an academic education within state lower tuition fees, while American students must pay higher fees? 10. In conclusion, should the anti-sovereignty, pro-illegal immigrant, open border pass AMNESTY, how are they going to halt the next daunting waves of indigent people looking for a better life in the United States and placing in jeopardy poorly skilled American workers, who should not have to compete with alien labor?

    We now know the major Democratic culprits who under funded, weakened or otherwise killed strong immigration legislation such as E-Verify. Sen. Harry Reid, Speaker Pelosi, Sen. Burris, and others, including even Republican Party members involved in this travesty to cut-out the Real ID Act, 247(g) giving the power of arrest to the police. NUMBERSUSA is the site to reveal the poor grades of Senators and Congressman. They are the ones who approve the laws and added weight to your taxes. California–A Sanctuary State–is a great example of out-of-control illegal immigration, where taxpayers have been stung by higher taxes to pay for the benefits by an unfit Sacramento Liberal Democrat assembly. Next in line is New York that is staring into a chasm of potential bankruptcy. IF THIS IS NOT “TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION” what is?

  • DCLib

    Try living in Washington DC where there are no Senators or Congressmen… THATS taxation without representation… As to your immigration lunacy: you would probably rail on about the privacy violation that running all americans through E-Verify would bring about, but what you don't understand is that the amount of illegal immigrants that are coming here are A) taking jobs that americans wont and b) an infinitesimal number of people.

  • http://www.out4immigration.org/ Kathy Drasky

    The Senate will be holding hearings on the Uniting American Families Act (UAFA) on June 3. Senator Patrick Leahy will be chairing. For more info: http://www.change.org/ideas/2008/view_blog/uafa…

    Btw – this is not just an immigration issue. It is a civil liberties issue, as one half of these binational couples is an American citizen, who is denied the civil right to sponsor their life partner to stay with them in the United States. Also, the majority of same-sex binational couples are made up of one American citizen and one foreign national who is legally in the US on a work, student or tourist visa. When visas run out, the problems begin, as these couples have no choice to stay together legally in this country. Many slip under the radar and leave the country, going to a country that recognizes their relationship for immigration purposes — like Canada, the Netherlands, Spain, Ireland, Australia, Brazil — even South Africa! Some choose to live apart. Others — out of pure desperation — let legal status expire and become undocumented. Can you blame them? The choice for these couples is to be separated from their life partner — their spouse, their soulmate — or live underground. What would any of us do in a similar situation? I ask you not to bash undocumented folks or their partners here — until you put yourself in their shoes.

  • Randy Hill

    Every day Gay Americans in bi-national relationships face the daunting question of will I be forced today to decide between being with the person I love and leaving the US or stay in the US without him.

    I am a US Citizen, a Vietnam Veteran, a home owner, a Tax payer and a member in good standing in my community. I have served my country, paid my taxes, and yet I am not afforded the same rights as my neighbors because I am a man in love with another man.

    The UAFA is about bringing the US into the 21st century, 20 countries around the world allow their citizens to sponsor the same sex partners for immigration. The United States, the greatest country in the world is behind in civil rights for it's Homosexual Citizens. YES we are US Citizens, we pay the same taxes as you (even higher) but we are not allowed the same rights.

  • Greg

    I am currently in the position to have to choose between my love and my country where I have fought long and hard to establish a career and a small business, where my friends and family live, and where i have spent my entire life. Where is wise solomon? The sheer injustice of this is mind boggling. My partner and I are currently planning a move to Canada, and every time we discuss it, I shrivel inside…just a little bit more. How much more should we be forced to take? How much strain is our relationship supposed to hold? Please support the Uniting American Families Act. Put yourself in our shoes. My partner holds a masters degree and we are both contributing members of our communities. Are we the type of individuals that you want to bar from access to this country? Our country is losing talent and human resources over this issue. We want the same chance as everyone else to find love and personal fulfillment.

  • Greg

    I am currently in the position to have to choose between my love and my country where I have fought long and hard to establish a career and a small business, where my friends and family live, and where i have spent my entire life. Where is wise solomon? The sheer injustice of this is mind boggling. My partner and I are currently planning a move to Canada, and every time we discuss it, I shrivel inside…just a little bit more. How much more should we be forced to take? How much strain is our relationship supposed to hold? Please support the Uniting American Families Act. Put yourself in our shoes. My partner holds a masters degree and we are both contributing members of our communities. Are we the type of individuals that you want to bar from access to this country? Our country is losing talent and human resources over this issue. We want the same chance as everyone else to find love and personal fulfillment.