“I don’t want to be an activist,” Josh Vandiver, a 29-year-old gay man explained.A Harvard graduate completing his Ph.D. at Princeton, with a focus on comparative ancient Greek and Renaissance political theory, Vandiver said, “I want to finish up my dissertation and become a professor… I’m a reclusive scholar. I like to be in the library all day.”Cristina Ojeda, a 24-year-old lesbian who came to the US from Mexico when she was 11 and became a citizen at the same time her father did, has more experience with LGBT causes. As an undergraduate at the University of California at Santa Cruz, she found herself amidst a politically charged student body. “It was natural to be involved,” she said.Still, when Ojeda, who grew up in California, moved to Buffalo to get a master’s in social work at SUNY, she found an apartment off campus in a low-income neighborhood where she felt uneasy leading a vis
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Uniting American Love - Gay City News
Posted by
uluckidog 570 days ago
(http://news.google.com)
US senator help Brazilian man reunite with his American husband
Posted by
USABound 705 days ago
(http://www.canadaeast.com)
A Brazilian man was reunited with his American husband this week after a U.S. senator pressed federal officials to temporarily allow the gay man back into the country on humanitarian grounds.
Nearly three years ago, the couple split when Oliveira was forced to return to Brazil after being denied permanent residency in the U.S. because the federal government does not recognize same-sex marriages.
The pair maintained contact through online video chats and sporadic visits during holidays.
The case gained international attention from gay rights and immigrant advocates who criticized U.S. officials for separating the couple even though they were legally married.
Nearly three years ago, the couple split when Oliveira was forced to return to Brazil after being denied permanent residency in the U.S. because the federal government does not recognize same-sex marriages.
The pair maintained contact through online video chats and sporadic visits during holidays.
The case gained international attention from gay rights and immigrant advocates who criticized U.S. officials for separating the couple even though they were legally married.
Brazilian Man and Massachusetts Husband Rejoin in Asylum Case
Posted by
USABound 705 days ago
(http://www.CNSNews.com)
A Brazilian man was reunited with his Massachusetts husband this week after U.S. Sen. John Kerry pressed federal officials to temporarily allow the 31-year-old gay man back into the country on humanitarian grounds.
Brazilian-born Genesio "Junior" Oliveira rejoined Tim Coco, 49, of Haverhill, at an emotional reunion at Boston's Logan International Airport.
Gay rights and immigrant advocates declared the case a rare victory for gay, married asylum seekers.
Brazilian-born Genesio "Junior" Oliveira rejoined Tim Coco, 49, of Haverhill, at an emotional reunion at Boston's Logan International Airport.
Gay rights and immigrant advocates declared the case a rare victory for gay, married asylum seekers.
Immigration Equality announces action fund
Posted by
USAFrance 879 days ago
(http://sdgln.com)
Immigration Equality, a non-profit advocacy and legal aid organization serving lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) and HIV-positive immigrants and their families, announced today that it has established a “501(c)4” entity, the Immigration Equality Action Fund, to significantly increase its federal advocacy and grassroots organizing work. The Action Fund’s launch also includes an expanded office in Washington, D.C., where a new policy staffer and an online grassroots organizer will soon join the organization.
“The launch of the Immigration Equality Action Fund comes at a critical moment in our work to advocate on behalf of LGBT immigrant families,” said Rachel B. Tiven, the organization’s executive director. “As Congress turns its attention to comprehensive immigration reform, and as a record number of lawmakers signal their support for the Uniting American Families A
“The launch of the Immigration Equality Action Fund comes at a critical moment in our work to advocate on behalf of LGBT immigrant families,” said Rachel B. Tiven, the organization’s executive director. “As Congress turns its attention to comprehensive immigration reform, and as a record number of lawmakers signal their support for the Uniting American Families A
They met nearly 20 years ago in the Netherlands.
From the start, Jenny Phipps, a Delaware native, and Ottie Pondman said they forged a bond they never shared with their husbands.
When Phipps divorced her husband of 17 years, she moved in with Pondman, a native of the Netherlands, who was already divorced. The two lived as a couple in Zoetermeer.
But when the 52-year-old Phipps decided she wanted to return to the United States following her brother's death, Pondman, 61, agreed and came over on a visa waiver program -- essentially a tourist permit -- to legally remain here.
In September, though, immigration officials gave Pondman 60 to 90 days to leave the country. Her only chance of staying was to get married.
From the start, Jenny Phipps, a Delaware native, and Ottie Pondman said they forged a bond they never shared with their husbands.
When Phipps divorced her husband of 17 years, she moved in with Pondman, a native of the Netherlands, who was already divorced. The two lived as a couple in Zoetermeer.
But when the 52-year-old Phipps decided she wanted to return to the United States following her brother's death, Pondman, 61, agreed and came over on a visa waiver program -- essentially a tourist permit -- to legally remain here.
In September, though, immigration officials gave Pondman 60 to 90 days to leave the country. Her only chance of staying was to get married.
UAFA Gains Influential New Cosponsor
Posted by
freedom2immigrate 901 days ago
(http://sdgln.com)
Senator Arlen Specter (D-PA), member of the Senate Judiciary Committee (and formerly that committee’s Republican Chairman), has signed on as a cosponsor of the Uniting American Families Act (UAFA).
At last June’s Senate Judiciary Committee UAFA hearing, Specter expressed strong support for ending discrimination against gay and lesbian Americans and their families in immigration law. Immigration Equality applauds Senator Specter for his support for LGBT binational families.
Eight of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s twelve Democrats are now cosponsors of UAFA. A ninth, Senator Ted Kaufman of Delaware, recently publicly stated his support for equal immigration rights for LGBT families
At last June’s Senate Judiciary Committee UAFA hearing, Specter expressed strong support for ending discrimination against gay and lesbian Americans and their families in immigration law. Immigration Equality applauds Senator Specter for his support for LGBT binational families.
Eight of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s twelve Democrats are now cosponsors of UAFA. A ninth, Senator Ted Kaufman of Delaware, recently publicly stated his support for equal immigration rights for LGBT families
Massachusetts man says Brazilian husband denied US asylum
Posted by
OneVoice 931 days ago
(http://www.bradenton.com)
A gay Brazilian man has been denied asylum by the Obama administration and won't be reunited with his Massachusetts husband in the U.S., the husband said Monday.
Tim Coco said Attorney General Eric Holder did not act on a Friday deadline in the case of Genesio "Junior" Oliveira, effectively denying the 30-year-old Brazilian man's request for asylum in the U.S. on humanitarian grounds.
"We needed the Attorney General to make a decision on whether Junior could come home," said Coco, 48, of Haverhill. "He didn't take this request seriously."
Tim Coco said Attorney General Eric Holder did not act on a Friday deadline in the case of Genesio "Junior" Oliveira, effectively denying the 30-year-old Brazilian man's request for asylum in the U.S. on humanitarian grounds.
"We needed the Attorney General to make a decision on whether Junior could come home," said Coco, 48, of Haverhill. "He didn't take this request seriously."
Washington man gets 18 months in gay immigration fraud
Posted by
Fight4theRight 942 days ago
(http://www.thenewstribune.com)
A man accused of advising straight immigrants to claim homosexuality - and potential persecution in their home countries - when they applied for asylum has been sentenced to 18 months in prison.
Steven Mahoney held himself out as an expert in immigration affairs and ran Mahoney and Associates in Kent, which advised immigrants on how to stay in the U.S. He pleaded guilty in April, acknowledging that between 1998 and 2007 he filed as many as 99 false immigration documents and was paid between $1,000 and $4,000 for each.
In addition to false claims of homosexuality, he advised some clients to claim they could be tortured due to their religious practices or political views.
His ex-wife, Helen Mahoney, was sentenced to six months. Both are naturalized U.S. citizens from Russia.
Steven Mahoney held himself out as an expert in immigration affairs and ran Mahoney and Associates in Kent, which advised immigrants on how to stay in the U.S. He pleaded guilty in April, acknowledging that between 1998 and 2007 he filed as many as 99 false immigration documents and was paid between $1,000 and $4,000 for each.
In addition to false claims of homosexuality, he advised some clients to claim they could be tortured due to their religious practices or political views.
His ex-wife, Helen Mahoney, was sentenced to six months. Both are naturalized U.S. citizens from Russia.
Gay Man Testifies On Immigration Reform
Posted by
OurHero-Tan 942 days ago
(http://www.advocate.com)
A congressional briefing held Friday to discuss immigration reform included five witnesses, one of whom was a gay man testifying about the struggles faced by binational LGBT couples.
Steve Orner of Washington, D.C., said goodbye on Wednesday to his partner of nearly 10 years, “Joe Smith” -- who asked that we not use his real name -- when Smith left to return to his native Indonesia.
“I'm scared to go back,” Smith said by phone on the day of his departure. “This is my home; I have been living here for half of my life.”... For now, the two have determined that living separately is their only option since they would have to be closeted in Indonesia and Orner would not be employable there.
Steve Orner of Washington, D.C., said goodbye on Wednesday to his partner of nearly 10 years, “Joe Smith” -- who asked that we not use his real name -- when Smith left to return to his native Indonesia.
“I'm scared to go back,” Smith said by phone on the day of his departure. “This is my home; I have been living here for half of my life.”... For now, the two have determined that living separately is their only option since they would have to be closeted in Indonesia and Orner would not be employable there.
In spite of hard times in Sacramento LGBT rights advance in California
Posted by
UnitedByLove 971 days ago
(http://socalvoice.net)
... that bans healthy gay and bisexual men from donating blood; and passage of the Uniting American Families Act, which would keep bi-national same-sex couples together by allowing one partner to sponsor the other for immigration. ...
For countless millions of people in America and around the globe, Lady Liberty and her torch light the way to freedom and equality. For gay and lesbian bi-national couples, the famed statue, with a cold and stern face, seems more like a heartless sentry guarding the nation’s borders and ripping lives apart.
Ryan Wilson, a Columbia resident and a sexual health coordinator at the University of South Carolina, first met his partner, Shehan Welihindha, at the 2008 National Lesbian and Gay Task Force Creating Change conference in Denver.
“We met in the very first session on the very first day,” Wilson told Q-Notes. “We ended up sitting at the same table because we were from the same region. Shehan was working at the University of Arkansas.”
They’ve been in a committed, mostly long-distance relationship ever since. Both Wilson, 25, and Welihindha, 27, ha
Ryan Wilson, a Columbia resident and a sexual health coordinator at the University of South Carolina, first met his partner, Shehan Welihindha, at the 2008 National Lesbian and Gay Task Force Creating Change conference in Denver.
“We met in the very first session on the very first day,” Wilson told Q-Notes. “We ended up sitting at the same table because we were from the same region. Shehan was working at the University of Arkansas.”
They’ve been in a committed, mostly long-distance relationship ever since. Both Wilson, 25, and Welihindha, 27, ha
Episcopal Church Adopts Immigration Equality Resolution
Posted by
DividedByLaw 1010 days ago
(http://www.episcopalchurch.org)
Assure fairness in immigration and specifically provide immigration equality for same-gender couples (D076). CONCURRED: The Resolution was adopted by both Houses and has become an Act of Convention.
//
The 76th General Convention, meeting in Anaheim, California, July 8-17, acted on or referred every one of the 419 resolutions it considered.
Below is an unofficial, unaudited, abbreviated summary of some of the resolutions passed by both the House of Bishops and the House of Deputies. ENS staff culled it from the General Convention Office's searchable legislative tracking website.
Meanwhile, the church's General Convention office has produced a 25-page summary of convention actions available here. It includes a list of resolutions sorted by their final status; a list of resolutions that deal with the church's constitution, canons and the convention's
//
The 76th General Convention, meeting in Anaheim, California, July 8-17, acted on or referred every one of the 419 resolutions it considered.
Below is an unofficial, unaudited, abbreviated summary of some of the resolutions passed by both the House of Bishops and the House of Deputies. ENS staff culled it from the General Convention Office's searchable legislative tracking website.
Meanwhile, the church's General Convention office has produced a 25-page summary of convention actions available here. It includes a list of resolutions sorted by their final status; a list of resolutions that deal with the church's constitution, canons and the convention's
Leftist Foundations Fund Open Borders Agenda (Right Side News)
Posted by
OneVoice 1037 days ago
(http://rightsidenews.com)
Foundations of Betrayal offers a fresh inside look at an overlooked enemy - hundreds of big tax-exempt, leftist foundations that despise free enterprise and, yes, even our Constitution and America's sovereignty. "Wealth controls culture" and Phil Kent names the control freaks - old-timers like the Ford and Rockefeller foundations as well as devious newcomers like George Soros. Issues ranging from radical environmentalism to open borders serve as their main battering rams to remold America. These unaccountable elites also pay church groups to join their leftward march. They even promote deviant sexual behavior... Ford's website highlights its support of many political advocacy groups such as the Migration Policy Institute, the Immigrant Workers Citizenship Project and the Lesbian and Gay Immigration Rights Task Force.
It is Time to March (Gay City News)
Posted by
MarcoMUC 1049 days ago
(http://us.rd.yahoo.com)
The March on Washington has reached critical mass and it will play to a national audience on October 11 — National Coming Out Day, the traditional day for gay Washington protests. On that day in 1987, as the AIDS epidemic was treated with a stony indifference by President Ronald Reagan, the LGBT community mobilized a major demonstration around the slogan “Silence = Death.”
By now, the march is a sure thing, and those of us who don’t participate run the risk of making it a failure. Those of us who do march are likely to have one of the happiest moments in our lives. It has been my pleasure to march on Washington nearly a dozen times. Had I not been overseas, I would have been in Washington in 1963 when Martin Luther King articulated his dream. Now is the time we carry equality one step further and demand the full inclusion of the LGBT community in the nation’s civil rights l
By now, the march is a sure thing, and those of us who don’t participate run the risk of making it a failure. Those of us who do march are likely to have one of the happiest moments in our lives. It has been my pleasure to march on Washington nearly a dozen times. Had I not been overseas, I would have been in Washington in 1963 when Martin Luther King articulated his dream. Now is the time we carry equality one step further and demand the full inclusion of the LGBT community in the nation’s civil rights l
What next for India gaydom?
Posted by
USABound 1055 days ago
(http://www.dnaindia.com)
Immigration rights - For Indian gay and lesbian couples, immigration is a vital area in the push for gay rights. Presently, they face difficulties in making career moves because of limitations regarding the visas they can obtain for their partners. SALGA points out there is a disgraceful prejudice in denying people immigration equality on the basis of sexual orientation.
"We are hoping that legalising gay marriages will allow same-sex couples to file for visas like straight couples," said Sooklall. He added that SALGA receives pleas for help from its own members and from gays and lesbians living in South Asia. "I know two cases where people did get asylum," said Sooklall.
Britain, Canada, South Africa and most west European countries have immigration policies that recognise same sex couples, but there has been no change to American immigration laws for gay coup
"We are hoping that legalising gay marriages will allow same-sex couples to file for visas like straight couples," said Sooklall. He added that SALGA receives pleas for help from its own members and from gays and lesbians living in South Asia. "I know two cases where people did get asylum," said Sooklall.
Britain, Canada, South Africa and most west European countries have immigration policies that recognise same sex couples, but there has been no change to American immigration laws for gay coup
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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.