Boies and Olson on PBS

David Boies and Ted Olson, the lawyers that teamed up to challenge Prop 8 in court, were in Bill Moyers' PBS program The Nation. It's a 40+ minute interview and was very powerful.

I hope you can watch the embedded video here, but just in case that's not working for you, you can head over to PBS.org to have a look.

-Andy

World Net Daily and the Gays

In case anyone has forgotten about Uganda's planned law that will start the genocide of gay people and their allies in that country, World Net Daily is here to give you more information, and to support that law!

How far away are we from the day that these wackos start calling for our deaths in this country as well?



If you give any credibility to World Net Daily, please keep this in mind as you read their news. They really are full of shit and shouldn't be trusted. And they shouldn't be supported in any way financially because of their stance towards gay people.

-Andy

Alex had an Interview Today

So Alex went to an interview today for an internship. From the sound of it, it went very well. We should be hearing more next week.

While this is an unpaid internship that likely won't turn into a job with a visa attached, it will at least stop the clock that is quickly ticking towards April 1, the day he must either have found a job and started work or else start making plans to leave the country. So this is great! Another really good piece of news here is that this internship is directly in his field, and could lead to some very good contacts that might lead to one of those visa-providing jobs. So keep your fingers crossed everyone!

-Andy

Meanwhile, in Uganda

So yeah, it sucks being treated differently under the law, but at least we have one thing to be happy about...

Gays in Uganda are about to be put up for genocide. We all thought that was the worst of it. It turns out that it is even worse. Not only will gays be put to death, but anyone who can be found guilty of failing to turn in gays to the government will also be eligible for the death penalty.

And this new law was cooked up with plenty of help from American evangelicals! Religion is just a shining light of beauty and peace, isn't it?



-Andy

New Sites added to Blogroll

In case you care what other sites might have information about immigration equality, I have several sites that are either dedicated exclusively to the cause, or at least mention it as a topic when there is news.

I added a couple new sites to the blogroll today, one of them being the Love Exiles Foundation. If you want to see more examples of people affected by US immigration inequality besides Alex and I, you can go to their stories section to see many more examples. It is heart breaking, but it is also empowering.

It is heart breaking, because Alex and I don't really want to leave our home and our friends behind, but it is empowering, because we have examples of others who were successful in finding a way to stay together and thrive in new homes. I know that if we have to, we'll be able to make that transition as well.

-Andy

New Immigration Equality Documentary

So Immigration Equality has created a new short documentary about the importance of the Uniting American Families Act. I hope all of you can take the 3 or 4 minutes to watch it and pass it around.



-Andy

Whither my Representative?

Just a quick update...

On Tuesday, I sent a note to Congressman Doggett via email. I posted it here after I sent it. 4 days later, I have no response. I'm wondering how long I should wait before determining that my representative in Congress has no interest in our plight and no plans to take any action? How long should I wait before deciding that there is nothing worse than a Democrat, because at least a Republican is honest about the fact that they wish me ill because I'm gay.

I'm curious as to your thoughts out there.

-Andy

My Letter to Congressman Doggett

Because both of my Senators are Republicans, and because I harbor some concern that Republicans would actively work to deport Alex because he's caught the gay, even though he is here legally and is doing nothing wrong, I hesitate to write them directly.

However, in support of my previous request, I have practiced what I preached and sent another letter today to my Congressman, Lloyd Doggett.

Here it is:

Congressman Doggett,

I am writing to you today to reiterate my request that you support and sponsor the Uniting American Families Act. I was reminded of your stance when I read today of a letter that was sent by the Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus to President Obama, Speaker Pelosi, Chairman Schumer, and Chairwoman Lofgren.

In that letter, they asked that the text of the Uniting American Families Act be included in any comprehensive immigration reform bill. I would ask that you wholeheartedly support such an action.

I have a very personal stake in this. On February 15, I will celebrate my 7 year anniversary with my partner. During that time, we have run the gauntlet of immigration issues, and we have been pretty successful so far, though it has come at great economic cost. However, we will be out of options as of February 1 of next year and be forced to find another country to call home. He comes from a Muslim country, so we can't go there. That leaves us with either splitting up or finding a new country to call home. This would be a new country without our families, without our friends.

I am asking that you recognize that I as an American am just as deserving of equal rights to sponsor the person I love as my straight next door neighbor, who did sponsor his wife for permanent residency. Please support this cause so that we can get on with our lives without waiting for the other immigration shoe to drop.

Thanks for your time and attention to this matter.

Sincerely,
Andy

-Andy

How You Can Help!

So today, 60 members of Congress took a stand that any comprehensive immigration reform should include gay couples. The group said that failing any comprehensive immigration reform, that the Uniting American Families Act should be passed immediately.

So, if you want to help, you can call your member of Congress. If they are on the list of below, call them or write them to let them know that you appreciate their support on this issue. If they didn't sign this letter, please call or write your Congressman to let them know that you want them to support comprehensive immigration reform that acknowledges gay bi-national couples and that you want them to support the Uniting American Families Act. You could also recommend that they join the Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus, something I did not know existed until today.

For those of you that follow through on this, I would love to see the response from your members of Congress (unless it's Lloyd Doggett, I get all the mail I want from that guy).

Below is the text of the letter, and after that, the names of all 60 representatives that signed the letter.

Dear President Obama, Majority Leader Reid, Speaker Pelosi, Chairman Schumer, and Chairwoman Lofgren:

As members of the Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus, we are writing to express our strong support for a comprehensive immigration reform bill which would end discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) binational families. We urge Congress to include the Uniting American Families Act (H.R. 1024/S. 424) in any comprehensive immigration reform legislation.

Currently, U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents may sponsor their spouses (and other immediate family members) for immigration purposes. But, same-sex partners committed to spending their lives together are not recognized as “families” under U.S. immigration law and thus do not have this same right. As a result, tens of thousands of binational families are either already living separately, face imminent separation, or have left the U.S. entirely in order to remain together. This is unacceptable, and we believe comprehensive immigration reform legislation must include a strong family reunification component inclusive of LGBT families.

According to 2000 census data compiled by the Williams Institute, an estimated 36,000 LGBT binational families are impacted by the inability to sponsor their partners for residency, and nearly half of those (47 percent) are raising children. Our existing, discriminatory immigration laws hurt not only those individuals, but their extended families, communities, and employers, as well. Not only would an inclusive family reunification provision strengthen American families, it would bolster the competitiveness of businesses in the U.S. by allowing corporations to attract, employ, and retain the very best talent from across the globe. Indeed, the U.S. lags behind 19 countries that already recognize same-sex couples for immigration purposes, including the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, France, and Germany.

In truth, no immigration reform bill can be called “comprehensive” unless it includes all Americans, including those who are LGBT. This is recognized in the Reuniting Families Act (H.R. 2709), which includes LGBT families in addressing the broader immigration problem of family unification.

We urge you to include LGBT binational families in comprehensive immigration reform legislation. No one should be forced to choose between the person they love and the country they call home. It is time that our immigration laws kept families together instead of tearing them apart.

Baldwin, Tammy WI-2
Polis, Jared CO-2
Frank, Barney MA-4
Honda, Mike CA-15
Nadler, Jerrold NY-8
Quigley, Mike IL-5
Abercrombie, Neil HI-1
Berkley, Shelley NV-1
Berman, Howard CA-28
Blumenauer, Earl OR-3
Brady, Robert PA-1
Capps, Lois CA-23
Capuano, Michael MA-8
Carson, Andre IN-7
Chu, Judy CA-32
Clarke, Yvette NY-11
Davis, Susan CA-53
DeGette, Diana CO-1
Delahunt, William MA-10
Doyle, Mike PA-14
Ellison, Keith MN-5
Engel, Eliott NY-17
Filner, Bob CA-51
Grijalva, Raul AZ-7
Gutierrez, Luis IL-4
Hare, Phil IL-17
Harman, Jane CA-36
Hastings, Alcee FL-23
Hirono, Mazie HI-2
Holt, Rush NJ-12
Israel, Steve NY-2
Kennedy, Patrick RI-1
Kucinich, Dennis OH-10
Lee, Barbara CA-9
Lewis, John GA-5
Lowey, Nita NY-18
Maloney, Carolyn NY-14
Matsui, Doris CA-5
McDermott, Jim WA-7
McGovern, James MA-3
Moran, James VA-8
Norton, Eleanor Holmes DC
Pallone, Frank NJ-6
Pingree, Chellie ME-1
Rothman, Steve NJ-9
Sánchez, Linda CA-39
Schakowsky, Janice IL-9
Serrano, Jose NY-16
Sherman, Brad CA-27
Speier, Jackie CA-12
Stark, Pete CA-13
Towns, Edolphus NY-10
Tsongas, Niki MA-5
Velázquez, Nydia NY-12
Wasserman Schultz, Debbie FL-20
Waxman, Henry CA-30
Weiner, Anthony NY-9
Welch, Peter VT
Woolsey, Lynn CA-6
Wu, David OR-1

You can find more information at the Immigration Equality Blog.

-Andy

More Republican Stuff

Whoops, I forgot about part 2.

Research 2000 did a survey of over 2,000 self-identified Republicans. Here are there results on gay issues:

Should openly gay men and women be allowed to serve in the military?
Yes 26
No 55
Not Sure 19

So, that's 45% that either think or might decide to think that I should be able to serve my country in uniform. Really, that's higher than I would think, but its only barely over one quarter of Republicans who already think that way...

Should same sex couples be allowed to marry?
Yes 7
No 77
Not Sure 16

23% in favor or might eventually decide to be in favor, but fewer than 1 in 10 would say yes today.

Should gay couples receive any state or federal benefits?
Yes 11
No 68
Not Sure 21

32% in favor or might eventually decide to be in favor. So there is only an 11% spread between gay marriage and any rights at all...

Should openly gay men and women be allowed to teach in public schools?
Yes 8
No 73
Not Sure 19

27% are ok with me being a teacher. 73% think that all gay teachers should be fired. I don't even have the words.

Here's the link to those questions and more.

Don't ever pretend like you are surprised that I believe that there is a special place in hell for Republicans. For you "fiscal conservatives," no tax cut is worth supporting those policies, in my opinion. Work on kicking those people out of your party if you truly want to help me.

-Andy

For My Republican Friends and Family

I've been frustrated for awhile now on how to approach this issue, and I saw a video today that really kind of put it in perspective for me, so I'm going to approach this post in two parts.

Let me start by saying that it is really exceedingly difficult for me to hold my tongue and avoid making you feel as bad as you make me feel whenever you gloat about your team winning. My team can't win, but at least my team doesn't get beat up as much when the Democrats are in power. I haven't made this explicitly clear in the past, and I know that I'm too polite most of the time, so I haven't given you the opportunity to know how deeply you are offending me when you start in with your partisanship. Well, I'm telling you now. Every vote for a Republican is a vote to ensure that I leave the country. That's not hyperbole, it's just the truth. With Democrats in charge, there is some small hope that the laws might someday be changed, but with Republicans there is no hope at all. So, when you gloat so that I can see or hear it, what I hear is that you are in favor of us leaving.

I'm not going to ask you to change your voting habits. I'm not even going to ask you not to talk about your team in front of me. I am going to ask that you think about that for at least a millisecond before your joy over your ridiculous team winning causes you to say things in my presence that makes me feel that way.

I am writing this to let you know that every time you have done this, it takes all my will to ignore those comments and try to pretend like they weren't said. The alternative would not be healthy for our relationship and at least so far our relationship has been more important to me than saying what I really want to say. I'm not sure how much longer that will be true. As Alex continues to look for a job, I continue to grow more frustrated and angry that it has to be this way. Republicans, especially the religious ones, are the #1 reason that this is the case today.

So now you know what you've been doing to me. I've not held it against you in the past because there is at least some chance that you haven't realized what your statements implied. Just know that I'm not going to listen to it anymore. Feel free to shout from the rooftops how awesome Republicans are and how horrible Democrats are, but when you do, please take me into consideration. If you can't do that, I'll try not to hold it against you, but I'm no longer going to listen to it. So don't be surprised if our phone call is disconnected in mid-sentence, don't be surprised if I walk away in the middle of a conversation, don't be surprised if I turn off your status updates on Facebook. And don't be surprised if I start saying things to you as mean as the things I am hearing you say.

Now that that is said, I'd like to add one more thing...When you vote for a Republican, you are voting for the attitude displayed in the clip below.



That's right, the Family Research Council thinks I should be in jail. It's not that I shouldn't be allowed in the military, it's that I should be rotting away in a prison. To me, that is the face of the Republican party today. These are the people that drove me away. Until those people are kicked to the curb, don't expect me to have any sympathy for your team. They have caused too much damage in my life for me to ever be on their side.

So, yeah, it's probably better if you just don't talk about Republicans around me, because frankly, you aren't going to make me suddenly support them, and you are just going to make me want to lump you in with that guy in the clip. I don't want to do that to you, but if you talk about it enough, I probably will.

-Andy

P.S. - I still love you