
Today, Stonewall Democrats of Western New York stood with 81 other organizations from across America in calling on our government to protect certain non-citizens from the impact of section 3 of the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act. In the letters signed by SDWNY and organizations such as the American Immigration Lawyers Association and Lambda Legal, our untied voice urged The Department of Homeland Security and Secretary Janet Napolitano, the Executive Office for Immigration Review and the Office of Immigrant Litigation to take action to protect families and couples from discrimination by the United States’ government.
“Family unity has long been the guiding principle of U.S. immigration law, and for too long the lesbian and gay spouses of Americans have been treated as legal strangers” our coalition of organizations wrote. “The Administration took a historic step forward in announcing its conclusion that Section 3 of DOMA cannot withstand even rational basis review.”
Stonewall Democrats of WNY are proud to stand in unity with these organizations to call upon our government to take action to protect LGBTQ Americans and their families. We look forward to each government office and department acting in the best interests of our families, and we, as always, urge our Congress to pass the Uniting American Families Act (HR 1024/ S 424) to bring full equality to America’s immigration system.
Read the full texts of the letters below: