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Our earlier reports came to fruition when today the Unites States Conference of Catholic Bishops and the National Association of Evangelicals, urged through a press call for support of comprehensive immigration reform and specifically for the exclusion of same-sex partners from immigration reform, thereby insisting on the status quo for gay and lesbian couples – exile, detention, hiding and no visas or sponsorship for same-sex couples in loving committed relationships.

However Immigration equality thinks this is no big deal and assert that the gay community has the upper hand on this one.

Today Steve Ralls, the spokesperson for Immigration Equality, speaking again to Kerry Eleveld at to the Advocate – said the breadth of support that has developed for folding gay families into the bill puts conservatives at a disadvantage. The combination of all those things
The 'so-called' Defense of Marriage Act? That 'so-called' is the sound of contempt toward the Christian, Jewish, and Muslim understanding of marriage.
Only through comprehensive reform can we restore the rule of law to our nation’s immigration system. We urge President Obama and congressional leaders to meet as soon as possible to discuss and draft comprehensive immigration reform legislation, with the goal of making it law by the end of 2009. The Catholic bishops of our country stand ready to assist in this effort.”

The Bishops, as well as Fierce Advocate and the Congress, need to well understand that the LGBT community, a community that already fully contributes their talents to our nation’s economic, social and spiritual well being and are registered voters, knows how to make phone calls, send E-mails, write letters to our representatives and who can work to vote those same representatives out of office… might just become extremely vocal in its opposition to any other immigration initiatives being considered if our com
One of the most vocal supporters of immigration reform has been the Catholic Church .
But earlier this month several Catholic Bishops said they will not support any immigration bill that includes protections for gay and lesbian couples… and Bishop John C. Wester of Salt Lake City, the chairman of the Catholic bishops’ Committee on Migration, wrote to Congress that the Uniting American Families Act designed to eliminate discrimination in immigration law against gay and lesbian couples, would “erode the institution of marriage and family,” by taking a position that is “contrary to the very nature of marriage which pre-dates the Church and the State” if passed….
But yesterday at the spring meeting of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops in San Antonio, Texas, the Archbishop of Chicago, Cardinal Francis George, the President of the United States Conference of Catholi
Catholic leaders in America have frequently presented themselves as defenders of immigrants against racism and xenophobia, but apparently this "defense" will only be provided so long as immigrants stick to the demands of Catholic dogma. Catholic leaders aren't interested in defending immigrants who are gay, so the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops will no longer support the Uniting American Families Act because it would treat gay couples just like married heterosexual couples.

I doubt that anti-gay bigots like Rodriguez and other Catholic bishops are completely ignorant of the fact that how they define marriage is not how marriage has been defined in every culture at every point in time. I doubt that they are ignorant of the different forms marriage has taken or of the fact that marriage today in America is very different from what marriage was a few decades or e
One of the most vocal supporters of immigration reform has been the Catholic Church. But the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops will not support an immigration bill that includes protections for gay and lesbian couples. KPCC’s Washington Correspondent Kitty Felde has the story.

Kitty Felde: Congressman Mike Honda has introduced a bill to expand the definition of immigrant families eligible to stay in the U.S. Under Honda’s bill, a widow who’s not a legal U.S. resident could stay if her husband dies. Same for widowers and orphans.

But Honda’s written in a provision so someone who’s gay can sponsor a same-sex partner for legal U.S. residency. Honda, who’s a Democrat from San Jose, says for him, including same-sex partners is a civil rights issue.

Congressman Mike Honda: When the founders wrote “All men are created equal,” we know today that we have
A White House summit with congressional leaders scheduled for June 16 is intended to begin the serious push toward creating and passing a comprehensive reform bill. President Obama has said he intends to take up immigration reform this year, but the White House staff has said they don't expect it to be resolved until 2010.

"The benefits this legislation seeks to provide are not contingent upon the definition of marriage, which I believe is an issue best left to the states," said Leahy. The bishop who heads the migration committee of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said in letters to members of Congress on June 2 that the conference would oppose such legislation. Another family reunification bill, the Reuniting Families Act, would allow traditionally defined families to reunite more quickly in the United States.

Leahy's bill, and a companion version in
U.S. lawmakers on Thursday unveiled legislation to help reunite families split apart for years by the creaky immigration system – including, controversially, same-sex partners.

Representative Mike Honda, who heads the caucus of Asian Americans, said that some families are split apart for decades due to the severe backlog in U.S. immigrant visas for relatives of some nationalities.“The benefits cannot be overstated,” Honda said. “American workers with families by their side are happier, healthier and more able to succeed than those distanced from loved ones for years on end.”

The legislation, of which a similar version has been introduced in the Senate, would make family reunification a priority in immigration and raise the number of potential visas by rolling over those unused in previous years.

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Promoting public awareness of the need for fairness in immigration policy particularly as it relates to the rights of same-sex bi-national couples in the United States who seek equal immigration rights; Providing information regarding political issues relating to gay immigration equality issues, rights and policy.