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GLBT to immigration office: May I have this dance? (can gay foreign "spouses" now get green cards?)
World Magazine ^ | 07/01/2011 | Tiffany Owens

Posted on 07/01/2011 1:03:49 PM PDT by SeekAndFind

SalsaDebates about illegal immigration and same-sex marriage have crossed paths.

The question: Will immigration officials recognize same-sex partnerships as marriage? The answer to this question will determine whether same-sex couples can receive green cards for their non-citizen, same-sex partners.

The debate hinges on the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and President Barack Obama’s lack of support for the federal law. Thousands of same-sex couples have applied for green cards but remain in legal limbo because courts cannot decide what status to grant them.

Case in point: Henry Velandia, a 27-year old professional salsa dancer from Caracas, Venezuela, came to the United States on a visitor’s visa and started a same-sex relationship in Connecticut, where he was legally married. He and his partner now live in New Jersey where their relationship is not recognized as a marriage.

When Velandia’s visitor’s visa expired, deportation proceedings began. Lavi Soloway, a homosexual rights attorney, successfully filed to have the order canceled. Although the New Jersey Office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement didn’t return calls or comment, Soloway is celebrating a victory lap for same-sex partnerships.

The bigger question is whether federal immigration officials will recognize the relationships as marriage, and in doing so, override states’ rights to determine the issue for themselves.

Although President Obama says he supports states’ autonomy on the issue of same-sex marriage, cases like Velandia’s will demonstrate whether his administration’s actions match his words.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: gaymarriage; homosexuals; homosexulaity; immigration

1 posted on 07/01/2011 1:03:55 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
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To: SeekAndFind

I sure am getting sick and tired of these creepy people.


2 posted on 07/01/2011 1:10:06 PM PDT by donhunt (I am sick and tired of those bastards insulting and lying to me.)
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To: SeekAndFind

The capacity for fraud in this is staggering......................


3 posted on 07/01/2011 1:10:12 PM PDT by Red Badger (Nothing is a 'right' if someone has to give it to you................)
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To: SeekAndFind

Obama will fly Henry Velandia, a 27-year old to Washington and sign him up for the dream act.


4 posted on 07/01/2011 1:33:19 PM PDT by moonshinner_09
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To: SeekAndFind

Why not have all gays move to either New York or California They can pass all their own laws and not bother the rest of us who prefer to live under what America has heretofore lived, God’s laws?


5 posted on 07/01/2011 1:59:32 PM PDT by Paperdoll (NO MORE BUSHS!)
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To: Paperdoll

They would be gone in two generations.


6 posted on 07/01/2011 3:23:22 PM PDT by usacon (I love the USA.)
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To: SeekAndFind

Professional salsa dancer? Now there’s a job with a bright future!


7 posted on 07/02/2011 8:29:31 AM PDT by tal hajus (ever the cynic)
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