The New York Times reports that immigration reform is on the agenda in the USA. This is good news for LGBT families:
The Obama administration will insist on measures to give legal status to an estimated 12 million illegal immigrants as it pushes early next year for legislation to overhaul the immigration system, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said on Friday.
If our families are included, the United States would join the growing list of countries that recognize same-sex couples for immigration purposes.
Several bills are in the works in the US Congress. The first bill expected to be announced comes from Rep. Guiterrez of Illinois. LGBT and immigration right organizations including Love Exiles have been lobbying Guiterrez to include our families. If you’re reading this, please sign the petition right now to ask Guiterrez to make his bill inclusive of all American families.
It is not known yet whether Guiterrez has taken up this call, which would re-unite thousands of US citizens separated from committed partners and provide a pathway to legal status for binational LGBT families. It would also give US citizens who have left the US to be with their partners the opportunity to return home.
