Remember Henry and Josh, the Venezuelan and American husband pair that the US wanted to separate because of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act? In early June federal immigration officials cancelled the case on Henry’s deportation proceedings which is awesome because, as their lawyer Lavi Soloway says, “This action shows that the government has not only the power but the inclination to do the right thing when it comes to protecting certain vulnerable populations from deportation.”
So they’re safe.
But will the government extend the same courtesy to Alex Benshimol and Takako Ueda, a Venezuela and Japanese native who will soon face deportation from their American-born spouses unless the government intervenes?
On July 4th Ueda’s visa will expire and she will have to leave Frances Herbert, her partner of 31 years who she married 11 years ago. Ueda has already begun packing her belongings.
How about we take this to the next level?
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Then there’s Doug Gentry and Alex Benshimol. They’ve been together for six years and got married in California. Stop the Deportations will ask “the Immigration Judge and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement attorney prosecuting the case to put these deportation proceedings on hold pending the outcome of efforts to repeal DOMA or a final definitive ruling on DOMA’s constitutionality by the federal courts.”
You can sign petitions to help keep Takako Ueda and Alex Benshimol with their legal spouses.
But keep in mind, we also still have Cristina Ojeda and Monica Alcota on the chopping block as well as countless other legally married gay couples discriminated against by DOMA.
We have to push hard against to stop the government from tearing our families apart.
kjc
I am in a similar situation! I live in NY but the Marriage law is not strong enough.
An Ella Fan
Bullshit Queerty!
You will use any excuse expedient to bash Obama. Facts and reality be damned!
He’s tearing our families apart! Really??? Exactly how is he doing that?
Not defending DOMA? Is that how he is doing it?
No doubt your headline and generous lack of any pertinent facts laying the blame personally at Obama’s feet will be enough to appease the more vociferous and foaming-at the-moth Obama haters prevalent at your site, but your credibility – which is pretty much tabloid fodder at best – has reached subterranean lows.
Not only am I going to vote for Obama, I am also going to volunteer to work at his nearest campaign headquarters – as an out and proud gay man – just because I want as much political distance – physical is good too – between you, your ilk and me.
Let me know when you grow a pair and report on news without the baiting headlines and weak as water facts.
akn
It seems to me like the Vandiver-Velandia is an isolated case that had a favorable result because the couple are a young, white media-genic pair who (because of that) drew a lot more media attention than any of the other international couples getting f’ed over by DOMA. Letting Henry Velandia stay in the country provides a media-friendly suggestion (but only the suggestion and not a guarantee) that the law might eventually, someday, who knows when, change for all international couples.
the crustybastard
@An Ella Fan:
One of Obama’s first acts as president was to suspend the deportations of non-citizen military widows and widowers. He got on the Democratically controlled Congress to fix the law that allowed for their deportations, which they did.
This I applaud. It was the legally and morally correct thing to do.
However, he refuses to do the very same thing for live gay citizens that he will do for dead straight ones. Thus, Obama will bend over backwards to accommodate an entire class of non-citizens, but only grudgingly accommodates gay citizens on an individual ad hoc basis.
Which leads to the inexorable conclusion that non-citizens are a higher priority to Obama than gay citizens.
So by all means, you go bust your chump hump for the guy who doesn’t even regard you as a second-class citizen, Mr. Proud Gay Man.
nick
@akn:
totally agree that the attractive couple gets more media attention which got them the verdict they wanted. When you’re fighting to keep your spouse you gotta use everything you got. Too bad it has to be on a case by case basis…
rksu747
I’m voting for Obama again even if Queerty chooses to make him the fall guy for everything that ails gay America.
The Artist
Obama! Seriously! I would hope that people recognize just how powerful the man would be during his second term. A lot of shit would change, go ahead vote for Pawlenty, Bachmann, Palin or any other jackass that would continue to bring the county down. PEACELUVNBWILD!
tjr101
Was this article written by Jim Hlavac, PoliticallyIncorrect or some other GOProuder?