Holyoke is a city that derives a deep sense of pride from its immigrant history. Now a city councilor is asking his colleagues to voice their support for a proposed federal law that would extend rights already given to immigrant partners in straight couples to gay couples, too.
Last week, Ward 4 City Councilor Tim Purington brought to the Council a resolution supporting the Uniting American Families Act. The bill would rewrite federal immigration law to allow gay Americans to sponsor non-American permanent partners or spouses for legal residency in the U.S. Currently, the law only allows that right to legally married straight couples.
A “permanent partner” is defined in the bill as an adult involved “in a committed, intimate relationship with another individual 18 years of age or older in which both parties intend a lifelong commitment.” The two must be “financially interdependent,” and neither may be married to anyone else. The proposed law would also provide rights to the children of the non-U.S. partner.
The bill was introduced last year in the U.S. Senate by Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy, a Democrat, and in the House by Rep. Jerrold Nadler, a New York Democrat. It’s backed by all members of the Massachusetts delegation except U.S. Rep. Stephen Lynch, a Democrat from eastern Massachusetts, and Republican Sen. Scott Brown.
According to a statement released by Nadler’s office at the time he introduced the bill, at least 19 other countries already extend these rights to gay couples. But, the statement noted, “Because the U.S. does not legally recognize lesbian and gay couples and their children as families, many same-sex binational couples are subsequently torn apart.”
Perhaps the best-known case involves Shirley Tan, a citizen of the Philippines, who lives in California with her partner and their two sons. Tan, who had been in the U.S. on an expired visa, applied for legal status years ago but was denied. Tan said she was never informed of the denial until 2009, when she was arrested at home by immigration agents for being in the country illegally.
Tan was eventually allowed to return to her home, wearing an electronic monitoring bracelet. Her deportation case is still pending, following an intervention on Tan’s behalf by Sen. Diane Feinstein.
Purington said he’d learned of the bill from a volunteer for Out 4 Immigration, a national activist group that fights for equal immigration rights for gay, lesbian, bi and transgendered people. “It shocked me to find out that I can be legally married in Massachusetts to someone of the same sex, but I’m not allowed to sponsor him for [residency],” said Purington (whose husband is an American citizen).
While some fellow councilors questioned why a local governing body should weigh in on a federal bill, Purington maintains that “it’s absolutely appropriate” for the City Council to take positions on important federal matters, to keep constituents informed about the issues and about where their representatives stand.
“It seemed like an important thing to get behind,” he added. “It’s totally relevant because there are plenty of LGBT people in Holyoke.”
While Purington had hoped to see his resolution come to a vote at last week’s meeting, it was instead referred to the Council’s Ordinance Committee. Still, Purington said, the new ordinance chairman, Councilor Diosdado Lopez, has been working hard to move items through the committee rather than let them languish there—leaving Purington hopeful his resolution will have a hearing in the near future.
