• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • About Towleroad
  • Towleroad on Social Media
  • Privacy Policy

Towleroad Gay News

Gay Blog Towleroad: More than gay news | gay men

  • Body
  • Daily Resist
  • POLITICS
  • Travel
  • Music
  • Theatre
  • Film
  • TV
  • Sports
  • Business
  • Men
  • Marriage Equality
  • Space
  • Trans Rights
  • Books
  • Science
  • Gay Iconography
  • TowleREAD

Pelosi, Over 80 Democrats Pressure Obama On Protecting Binational Same-Sex Couples

August 2, 2012 by Andrew Belonsky

ObamaPelosiDOMAThere was lots of political hoopla when the Obama Administration announced last August that immigration officials would use "prosecutorial discretion" for low-priority cases, a move the White House made out a a step forward to protecting binational same-sex couples from being separated because DOMA, which does not recognize their marriages and unions.

"The prosecutorial discretion memo provides for the use of discretion for people with strong community ties, with community contributions and with family relationships. We consider LGBT families to be families in this context," an administration official told Metro Weekly at the time.

Fast forward a year and there's been little movement, or explanation, about the rules. Hoping to put some pressure on the president, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and more than 80 other Democrats yesterday sent a letter asking Obama and company to be more specific.

Chris Geidner at BuzzFeed offers more details:

In [the] letter, Pelosi — along with Reps. Jerrold Nadler and Mike Honda, the lead sponsors of two bills aimed at addressing LGBT inequalities in the immigration system, and 81 other Democrats — called on Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano to "issue a written field guidance or a memorandum to explicitly state the policy of your August 18, 2011 announcement which would direct DHS personnel to consider LGBT family ties as a positive factor for the exercise of prosecutorial discretion."

The House members — including out gay Reps. Barney Frank, Jared Polis and David Cicilline — go on to say that "[a] written policy is the best way to ensure that the decision by President Obama and DHS to recognize LGBT family ties for immigration purposes will be implemented so that families will remain together."

Lawyer Lavi Soloway, founder of Stop the Deportations, told Geidner that a lack of specific codes "continues to send mixed messages to deportation officers, Immigration Judges and Immigration and Customs Enforcement prosecutors who have the discretion to protect our families and stop deportations."

Filed Under: DOMA, Nancy Pelosi, News Tagged With: DOMA, immigration, Nancy Pelosi, News

Recent Posts

  • Visit Key West Like a Queen: Drag Icons Give Their Tourist Tips

    Visit Key West Like a Queen: Drag Icons Give Their Tourist Tips

    7 mins ago
  • Chuck Schumer Grimaces After Saying Donald Trump ‘Incited the Erection’ — WATCH

    Chuck Schumer Grimaces After Saying Donald Trump ‘Incited the Erection’ — WATCH

    34 mins ago
  • GOP Rep. Madison Cawthorn Lied About Training for Paralympics

    GOP Rep. Madison Cawthorn Lied About Training for Paralympics

    4 hours ago
  • Senate to Get Article of Impeachment from House on Monday

    Senate to Get Article of Impeachment from House on Monday

    4 hours ago
Previous Post: « 5,000 People And Eight Donkeys Expected To Attend Jerusalem Pride
Next Post: Jennifer Lopez’s Boyfriend Not At Gay Peepshow, Say Barbers »

Primary Sidebar

  • Visit Key West Like a Queen: Drag Icons Give Their Tourist Tips

  • Chuck Schumer Grimaces After Saying Donald Trump ‘Incited the Erection’ — WATCH

  • GOP Rep. Madison Cawthorn Lied About Training for Paralympics

Recent Posts

  • Visit Key West Like a Queen: Drag Icons Give Their Tourist Tips

    Visit Key West Like a Queen: Drag Icons Give Their Tourist Tips

    7 mins ago
  • Chuck Schumer Grimaces After Saying Donald Trump ‘Incited the Erection’ — WATCH

    Chuck Schumer Grimaces After Saying Donald Trump ‘Incited the Erection’ — WATCH

    34 mins ago
  • GOP Rep. Madison Cawthorn Lied About Training for Paralympics

    GOP Rep. Madison Cawthorn Lied About Training for Paralympics

    4 hours ago
  • Senate to Get Article of Impeachment from House on Monday

    Senate to Get Article of Impeachment from House on Monday

    4 hours ago
  • Newt Gingrich Tells Sean Hannity That Democrats Want to ‘Exterminate’ Republicans: WATCH

    Newt Gingrich Tells Sean Hannity That Democrats Want to ‘Exterminate’ Republicans: WATCH

    5 hours ago
  • ‘Years & Years’ Covers Pet Shop Boys’ ‘It’s a Sin’ — LISTEN

    ‘Years & Years’ Covers Pet Shop Boys’ ‘It’s a Sin’ — LISTEN

    6 hours ago
  • Schumer Urged to Deny Committee Seats to Hawley, Cruz, and Other Republicans Who ‘Incited Deadly Insurrection’

    Schumer Urged to Deny Committee Seats to Hawley, Cruz, and Other Republicans Who ‘Incited Deadly Insurrection’

    7 hours ago
  • ‘QAnon Shaman’ and Capitol Insurrectionist Jacob Chansley Regrets Being ‘Duped’ by Trump: WATCH

    ‘QAnon Shaman’ and Capitol Insurrectionist Jacob Chansley Regrets Being ‘Duped’ by Trump: WATCH

    7 hours ago
  • Alice Hoagland, Mother of Gay 9/11 Hero Mark Bingham and LGBTQ Ally, Has Died

    Alice Hoagland, Mother of Gay 9/11 Hero Mark Bingham and LGBTQ Ally, Has Died

    8 hours ago
  • Chances for Trump Senate Impeachment Conviction Fading: REPORT

    Chances for Trump Senate Impeachment Conviction Fading: REPORT

    8 hours ago

Most Commented

  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • About Towleroad
  • Towleroad on Social Media
  • Privacy Policy

Footer

Copyright © 2021 · Log in