STOP THE DEPORTATIONS THE DOMA PROJECT: PRESS RELEASE: Married Gay Couples Challenge DOMA in Immigration Court

Friday, February 25, 2011

PRESS RELEASE: Married Gay Couples Challenge DOMA in Immigration Court

Married Gay Couples Challenge DOMA in Immigration Courts Across the Country in a Concerted Effort to End Discrimination and Stop The Deportations of Spouses of Gay and Lesbian Americans

In New York, New Jersey and California three married, same-sex binational couples, two gay male couples and one lesbian couple, are facing Immigration Judges in deportation proceedings. Each will brandish a pending green card petition filed by the American spouse on behalf of the foreign spouse. In each case their lawyer, Lavi Soloway, will argue that deportation proceedings should be halted because the only thing standing between each couple and a green card is the Defense Of Marriage Act which the President and the Attorney General announced this week will no longer be defended in court based on their finding that the statute is unconstitutional.

Noemi Masliah & Lavi Soloway

Soloway, an immigration lawyer and long time gay rights activist, argues that the Department of Homeland Security should cease giving effect to this unconstitutional law and put all deportation proceedings on hold where they involve married gay binational couples, who but for DOMA, would be eligible for green cards on the basis of their marriages. The issue is urgent as deportation carries with it a 10-year ban on returning. This week's news from the Obama administration is a shot in the arm for a strategy that Soloway's law firm launched in October 2010 after a Federal Court judge in Boston struck down Section 3 of DOMA as unconstitutional. Participants in that strategy, the pro bono project known as STOP THE DEPORTATIONS THE DOMA PROJECT, include dozens of gay binational couples facing deportation, separation or exile. The law firm, Masliah & Soloway, whose partners are both gay immigrants who also founded Immigration Equality in 1993, created this pro bono project to raise awareness of the crisis of deportations of spouses of gay and lesbian Americans.

Contact: Lavi Soloway 212-227-9390 or 323-904-4730

stopthedeportations [at] gmail.com

5 comments:

AnonymousFebruary 25, 2011 at 3:15 PM
please, please don't stop the fight, we are living outside the usa because of the same reason, we want to go back but we cant. please make this happen in this life time! please!
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AnonymousFebruary 25, 2011 at 5:38 PM
I am so fantastically proud to know you
sincerely
Inger Knudson
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AnonymousFebruary 27, 2011 at 10:30 AM
Congratulations on this move. Considering the United States will not defend this unconstitutional law, you may be fighting a fight without an opponent. I fully suspect some group of bigots will try to launch a defense of DOMA, and I hope you are able to get them thrown off the case for lack of standing.
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AnonymousMarch 11, 2011 at 8:44 AM
the country and same-sex couples worldwide need more lawyers like you. fight on lavi you are awesome,suzanne.
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Michelle HinchMarch 27, 2011 at 11:58 AM
My Partner and I are facing separation when her Visa is up.
If we can marry, if she can stay, please let us know. Thank You
~Michelle Hinch
Los Angeles
Facebook
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WHAT ARE WE FIGHTING FOR?

STOP THE DEPORTATIONS is a campaign launched in October 2010 by a group of married binational couples working with attorneys Lavi Soloway and Noemi Masliah, who are founders of Immigration Equality and partners in the law firm, Masliah & Soloway. Our purpose is to raise awareness of the cruel impact of the DEFENSE OF MARRIAGE ACT on married gay and lesbian binational couples and bring an end to that discrimination. Because the federal government denies recognition to legally married same-sex couples, they are deprived of the usual access to immigration laws that allow all other American citizens to petition for a green card for their foreign spouses.

In most cases, DOMA is the only obstacle preventing married binational couples from achieving resolution of the immigration issue. Because of DOMA, married binational couples are faced with the very real threat of being torn apart because of expiring visas or deportation orders. Many binational couples are exiled to third countries where their relationships are recognized under the law. Still others are kept apart, left to maintain a long-distance relationship on line, by phone calls and visits.

Every day in this country there are gay and lesbian Americans whose spouses face deportation proceedings. This must end. We cannot sit by while the government destroys the hopes and dreams of loving couples. Join our fight against DOMA and help bring an end discrimination against same-sex binational couples. For more information on how you can get involved email us here.

DOMA Project Participation

We invite potential DOMA project participants to contact us if they are same-sex binational couples who are married (or planning to marry) and who want to join our campaign to end discrimination in immigration law. With the exception of our DOMA Project participants, we do not encourage any married same-sex couple to file an I-130 Petition for Alien Relative as such a petition will be denied and the filing of the petition may have significant negative consequences on the foreign spouse's future eligibility for various non-immigrant visas, or precipitate removal proceedings if that person is in the United States without lawful status. Any binational couples considering marriage should consult THE DOMA PROJECT or other qualified attorney or appropriate gay rights organization to discuss the potential consequences for eligibility for non-immigrant visas and to address other immigration related concerns. To learn more about our DOMA Project, contact us here. Your story is a vital part of winning this struggle.

ADD YOUR STORY

We are actively looking for binational couples to join this campaign. Your testimonials, videos, photographs, etc. will help us put discrimination into terms that everyone can understand: its cruel impact on individual couples and families. Anyone interested in getting involved to help raise awareness of the impact of DOMA on binational couples should contact us here. All information received will be confidential. Couples who want to participate without revealing their full names or other identifying information are welcome. Binational couples who are currently in separate countries and binational couples living abroad are also welcome.