Rep. Michael Honda of
California held a noon press conference Thursday in Washington,
D.C., in which he announced introduction this week of the
Reuniting Families Act, a comprehensive immigration
package that includes allowing gay Americans to sponsor their
partners for residency.
Rep. Michael Honda of
California held a noon press conference Thursday in Washington,
D.C., in which he announced introduction this week of the
Reuniting Families Act, a comprehensive immigration
package that includes allowing gay Americans to sponsor their
partners for residency.
The bill's Senate
companion, introduced in the Senate Wednesday by Sen. Robert
Menendez of New Jersey, excludes the provision to end
discrimination against same-sex partners.
The Senate Judiciary
Committee also held its first hearings Wednesday on a separate,
stand-alone immigration bill that would end discrimination
against LGBT families, the Uniting American Families Act, which
has been introduced in both the House and Senate.
Altogether, four
immigration bills are in process, three of which include
protections for binational same-sex partners and their
children.
A spokesperson for
Immigration Equality, a group that lobbies on behalf of
same-sex couples, called the inclusion of LGBT families in
Representative Honda's bill "historic."
"This bill has the
largest coalition of immigrant and civil rights groups
supporting it that I have seen in a long time," said Steve
Ralls, Immigration Equality director of
communications. "This is momentous for our community as a
whole to be included with this broad coalition in a bill that
will set the tone for comprehensive immigration reform."
Ralls said they were
"disappointed" that Senator Menendez chose to exclude gay
partners from the Senate version of the bill, but noted that
the Democratic senator is a sponsor of the stand-alone
legislation. "We are grateful for his support of UAFA," he
said.
The U.S. Conference on
Catholic Bishops has mounted a strong campaign against
including LGBT families in the omnibus immigration
legislation.
Bishop John C. Wester
of Salt Lake City, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic
Bishops' Committee on Migration, wrote letters to both Honda
and Menendez expressing his opposition to the Uniting American
Families Act.
"Including UAFA in
the Reuniting Families Act would erode the institution of
marriage and family by according marriage-like immigration
benefits to same-sex relationships, a position that is contrary
to the very nature of marriage, which predates the church and
the state," Wester wrote to Honda. His letter to Menendez
indicated that the Senate version had his full support because
it excluded UAFA.
The White House is
expected to convene a summit on the omnibus legislation within
the next few weeks, and LGBT inclusion in that package is
shaping up to be a contentious part of the debate.
Rep. Barney Frank of
Massachusetts has expressed pessimism for UAFA's prospects.
"You got two very
tough issues -- the rights of same-sex couples and
immigration," he told the
Washington Blade
last month. "You put them in the same bill, and it becomes
impossible. We just don't have the votes for it."
But Ralls added that
Frank has indicated he will push LGBT inclusion in the bill
behind the scenes.
"Congressman Frank
has told us that he supports including us in comprehensive
immigration reform, and that's what's important because
congressional leaders will look to Congressman Frank on that
issue," Ralls said.
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