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Gay couples discussed in Senate immigration hearing

Napolitano says no greater risk of fraud upon UAFA passage

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United States Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano, gay news, Washington Blade
United States Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano, gay news, Washington Blade

Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano said UAFA would not present a greater risk of fraud. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)

Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano said on Wednesday that protections for bi-national same-sex couples would result in no greater risk of fraud under U.S. immigration code.

During a hearing on comprehensive immigration reform before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Napolitano made the case for comprehensive immigration reform and answered questions about legislation that would enable gay Americans to sponsor a same-sex foreign partner for residency in the United States.

These couples face separation ā€” and possibly deportation of the foreign national in the relationship ā€” under current law. President Obama has called for a provision addressing this issue as part of his plan for comprehensive immigration reform.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) asked whether the Uniting American Families Act ā€” legislation addressing the issue that he introduced on the same day in the Senate ā€” would present a risk of people abusing the system to gain entry to the country.

In response, Napolitano denied any problems with respect to fraudĀ would present themselves upon passage of Leahy’s legislation.

“Our adjudicators are experienced at fraud, fraud detection,” Napolitano said. “We’ve actually increased the number of examiners who focus on this. This is done primarily at [U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services]. But, no, we don’t see that as a barrier to achieving equality.”

In his opening statement before the hearing, Leahy ā€” saying he wants the committee to complete work on immigration reform legislation “over the next few months” ā€” announced he had introduced the legislation with bipartisan support along with Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), who became the first Republican to co-sponsor the legislation in September.

“This legislation will end the needless discrimination so many Americans face in our immigration system,” Leahy said. “Too many citizens, including Vermonters who I have come to know personally and who want nothing more than to be with their loved ones, are denied this basic human right. This policy serves no legitimate purpose and it is wrong.”

UAFA imposes the same restrictions and penalties applied to straight Americans seeking to sponsor a spouse for residency via a marriage-based green card application under the Immigration & Naturalization Act. The penalties for fraud include a maximum of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Shin Inouye, a White House spokesperson, said in response to a query over whether Obama has decided to endorse UAFA that the legislation is in line with Obama’s plan for immigration reform, which includes a provision for bi-national same-sex couples.

“The president has long believed that Americans with same-sex partners from other countries should not be faced with the painful choice between staying with the person they love or staying in the country they love,” Inouye said. “There is already legislation that has been introduced in Congress that would address that, and the presidentā€™s proposal tracks that legislation.”

The 12-page testimony that Napolitano submitted to the committee reiterates Obama’s support for bi-national same-sex couples as part of reform, saying his plan “treats the families of same-sex partners the same as other families by giving foreign born same-sex partners of Americans access to the family based immigration system.”

Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) ā€” lamenting that the issue is often seen as a “divisive issue or side issue that doesn’t deserve focus” Ā ā€” followed up later with questions about whether the Obama administration could commit to ceasing the deportation of foreign-nationals in same-sex relationships under current law if nothing is done. Napolitano denied she was able to take such action under the Defense of Marriage Act.

“I cannot give a categorical answer there because of DOMA, and we are charged with enforcing DOMA as well,” Napolitano replied.

LGBT advocates ā€” including Immigration Equality ā€” have been pushing the Obama administration to place on hold the marriage-based green card applications of bi-national same-sex couples until DOMA is stricken from the books. Upon each request, the administration has said it must uphold DOMA.

Under Napolitano, the administration has already taken steps to assist bi-national couples.Ā In October,Ā the Department of Homeland Security issued guidanceĀ stipulating immigration officers should consider ā€œlong-term, same-sex partnersā€ as families when considering whether to exercise prosecutorial discretion in the potential deportation of an undocumented immigrant.

Also presenting testimony during a second panel at the hearing was Jose Antonio Vargas,Ā a gay Filipino undocumented immigrant and award-winning journalist.

While his testimony reflected more on the importance of incorporating language as part of reform along the lines of the DREAM Act to allow young, undocumented immigrants like himself a path to citizenship, VargasĀ talked about being both gay and an undocumented immigrant as reasons why he’s faced challenges in the country.

Under questioning from Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii),Ā Vargas said he’s spoken with bi-national same-sex couples and realized the destructiveness of current immigration law.

“It’s been really interesting when you see same-sex couples say I can’t marry and petition of 5, 10, 12 years because we have DOMA, the Defense of Marriage Act,” Vargas said. “The federal government doesn’t acknowledge same-sex marriage even if it happens in New York, for example, or Massachusetts. You really see how broken it is from the perspective of individual lives and their connections to their own communities, and that’s why it was important for me not just to bring my Filipino-American family, but to bring the family that I found at my high school.”

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State Department

Protesters demand US fully restore PEPFAR funding

Activists blocked intersection outside State Department on Thursday

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HIV/AIDS activists block an intersection outside the State Department on Feb. 6, 2025. They were demanding the Trump-Vance administration to fully restore PEPFAR funding. (Photo courtesy of Housing Works)

Dozens of HIV/AIDS activists on Thursday protested outside the State Department and demanded U.S. officials fully restore President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief funding.

The activists ā€” members of Housing Works, Health GAP, and the Treatment Action Group ā€” blocked an intersection for an hour. Health GAP Executive Director Asia Russell told the Washington Blade that police did not make any arrests.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Jan. 24 directed State Department personnel to stop nearly all U.S. foreign aid spending for 90 days in response to an executive order that President Donald Trump signed after his inauguration. Rubio later issued a waiver that allows PEPFAR and other ā€œlife-saving humanitarian assistanceā€ programs to continue to operate during the freeze.

The Blade on Wednesday reported PEPFAR-funded programs in Kenya and other African countries have been forced to suspend services and even shut down because of a lack of U.S. funding.

ā€œPEPFAR is a program that has saved 26 million lives and changed the trajectory of the global HIV/AIDS epidemic,” said Housing Works CEO Charles King in a press release. “The recent freeze on its funding is not just a bureaucratic decision; it is a death sentence for millions who rely on these life-saving treatments. We cannot allow decades of progress to be undone. The U.S. must immediately reaffirm its commitment to global health and human dignity by restoring PEPFAR funding.” 

ā€œWe demand Secretary Rubio immediately reverse his deadly, illegal stop-work order, which has already disrupted life-saving HIV services worldwide,” added Russell. “Any waiver process is too little, too late.”

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The White House

Trump bars trans women and girls from sports

The administration reversed course on the Biden-Harris policy on Title IX

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President Donald Trump (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

President Donald Trump on Wednesday issued another executive order taking aim at the transgender community, this time focusing on eligibility for sports participation.

In a signing ceremony for ā€œKeeping Men Out of Womenā€™s Sports” in the East Room of the White House, the president proclaimed “With this executive order, the war on womenā€™s sports is over.”

Despite the insistence by Trump and Republicans that trans women and girls have a biological advantage in sports over cisgender women and girls, the research has been inconclusive, at best.

A study in the peer reviewed Sports Medicine journal found ā€œno direct or consistent researchā€ pointing to this conclusion. A different review in 2023 found that post-pubertal differences are ā€œreduced, if not erased, over time by gender affirming hormone therapy.ā€

Other critics of efforts to exclude trans student athletes have pointed to the small number of people who are impacted. Charlie Baker, president of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, testified last year that fewer than 10 of the NCAA’s 522,000+ student athletes identify as trans.

The Trump-Vance administration has reversed course from the Biden-Harris administration’s policy on Title IX rules barring sex-based discrimination.

ā€œIf youā€™re going to have womenā€™s sports, if youā€™re going to provide opportunities for women, then they have to be equally safe, equally fair, and equally private opportunities, and so that means that youā€™re going to preserve womenā€™s sports for women,” a White House official said prior to the issuance of the order.

Former President Joe Biden’s Title IX rules, which went into effect last year, clarified that pursuant to the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Bostock v. Clayton County (2020), sex-based discrimination includes that which is based on the victim’s sexual orientation or gender identity.

The White House official indicated that the administration will consider additional guidance, regulations, and interpretations of Title IX, as well as exploring options to handle noncompliance by threatening federal funding for schools and education programs.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that Trump ā€œdoes expect the Olympic Committee and the NCAA to no longer allow men to compete in womenā€™s sports.ā€

One of the first legislative moves by the new Congress last month was House Republicans’ passage of the “Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act,” which would ban trans women and girls from participating in competitive athletics.

The bill is now before the U.S. Senate, where Republicans have a three-seat majority but would need 60 votes to overcome the filibuster.

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California

Los Angeles Blade names new publisher

Alexander Rodriguez brings deep media, business experience to outlet

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Alexander Rodriguez (Photo courtesy of Alexander Rodriguez)

The Los Angeles Blade, Southern Californiaā€™s leading LGBTQ news outlet, today announced the appointment of a new publisher, Alexander Rodriguez. 

Rodriguez has a long background in queer media, business development, and a deep commitment to the Los Angeles community. He has worked as a lead writer and podcast host for Metrosource Magazine and for GED Magazine; content director for FleshBot Gay; and as host and producer for the ā€œOn the Rocksā€ podcast. On the business side, Rodriguez spent years working in business development in the banking industry throughout Los Angeles. He also has an extensive background in event planning and management and has served on the boards of many LGBTQ non-profits. As a TV and radio personality, he has served as emcee for LGBTQ events around the nation. 

ā€œIā€™m excited to bring my diverse media and business experience to the Los Angeles Blade,ā€ Rodriguez said. ā€œWe will continue the Bladeā€™s mission of serving as our communityā€™s news outlet of record during these challenging times and work toward building bridges within our community and beyond.ā€

 Rodriguez starts in his new role on Monday, Feb. 3.

ā€œWe are thrilled to welcome Alexander to the Blade team,ā€ said Kevin Naff, one of the owners of the Los Angeles Blade. ā€œHis multimedia and business side experience will help us grow the Blade in L.A. and continue our commitment to best-in-class journalism serving the LGBTQ community in Southern California.ā€

Rodriguez becomes the Los Angeles Bladeā€™s second publisher following the unexpected death of founding publisher Troy Masters in December. Masters served in the role for nearly eight years. The community will come together for a celebration of Mastersā€™s life on Monday, Feb. 10, 7-9 p.m. at the Abbey. 

ā€œTroyā€™s legacy is in good hands with Alexander at the helm alongside our new local news editor, Gisselle Palomera,ā€ Naff added.

The Los Angeles Blade, launched in 2017, celebrates its eighth anniversary in March. It is the sister publication of the Washington Blade, founded in 1969, which offers unmatched coverage of queer political news and is the only LGBTQ outlet in the White House press pool and the White House Correspondentsā€™ Association, and the only LGBTQ outlet with a dedicated seat in the White House briefing room.

Alexander Rodriguez can be reached at [email protected].

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