Connect with us

National

LGBTQ groups oppose immigration overhaul bill

Republican opposition has essentially killed measure that includes foreign aid

Published

on

National LGBTQ Task Force Policy Director Allen Morris speaks at a rally against the Supplemental Funding Bill in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on Feb. 6, 2024. (Washington Blade photo by Michael K. Lavers)

LGBTQ rights groups have expressed their opposition to a $118 billion bill that would overhaul the country’s asylum system and provide additional aid to Ukraine, Israel and other U.S. allies.

U.S. Sens. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and James Lankford (R-Okla.) on Sunday released the Emergency National Security Supplemental Appropriations Act. 

The three lawmakers in a statement said the bill is “the strongest border security package in decades to reassert control of the border, end catch and release, enhance security, fix the asylum system and support border communities.”

“Sinema, Lankford, and Murphy’s bipartisan package reasserts control of the border, protects border communities, disrupts the flow of fentanyl into the country and solves the border crisis by ending catch and release, strengthening our asylum system by delivering determinations efficiently and fairly, enhancing security and improving the legal immigration system,” reads the statement posted on Sinema’s website.

The bill, among other things, would make the asylum process faster. The measure would also increase the burden for asylum seekers to prove a “credible fear” of persecution in their country of origin and allow the Department of Homeland Security to close the Southern border if at least 5,000 migrants cross during a 7-day period.

The Associated Press notes the bill also contains $60 billion in aid for Ukraine and $14 billion in aid for Israel. The measure would extend an additional $10 billion in humanitarian aid to civilians in Ukraine, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

“While we recognize the urgent need to pass meaningful immigration reform and address the challenges at our Southern border, the legislation’s proposed changes to our asylum system would cause irreparable harm to the lives of asylum seekers, including LGBTQ+ people,” said Human Rights Campaign Government Affairs Vice President David Stacy in a letter he sent to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Tuesday.

Stacy in his letter said HRC has “significant concerns that, under the new border expulsion authority, LGBTQ+ asylum seekers would be left languishing in Mexico for their asylum claims to be heard and at risk of increased violence.” The letter also references two of the previous White House’s policies: The “Remain in Mexico” policy that forced asylum seekers to pursue their cases in Mexico and Title 42, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention rule that closed the Southern border to most asylum seekers and migrants because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Human rights organizations have documented murder, sexual assault, extortion and kidnapping of LGBTQ+ asylum seekers under the Trump administration’s ‘Remain in Mexico’ and Title 42 policies, and this new authority would enable similar circumstances for those waiting to make their asylum claims,” said Stacy. “LGBTQ+ asylum seekers will face the difficult choice between returning to a country where they face persecution, or remaining in a dangerous limbo as they wait to enter the United States.”

The Biden-Harris administration ended the “Remain in Mexico” policy in 2021. Title 42 expired last May.

‘Immigration is an LGBTQ issue’

The National LGBTQ Task Force is among the groups that participated in a protest against the Emergency National Security Supplemental Appropriations Act that took place Tuesday in front of the U.S. Supreme Court.

“Immigration is an LGBTQ issue,” said Allen Morris, the group’s policy director.

“LGBTQ people are currently seeking asylum from countries where their very existence is criminalized and under threat,” added Morris. “The safety of our border and people in need of safety should not be used for political gain.”

U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and U.S. Reps. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), Greg Casar (D-Texas) and Nanette Barragán (D-Calif.) spoke alongside CASA Executive Director Gustavo Torres, Anu Joshi of the American Civil Liberties Union and others.

Padilla criticized Republicans who did not consult with Latino lawmakers from the negotiations over the bill. The California Democrat also singled out former President Donald Trump and his opposition to it.

“It’s a shame that they (Republicans) follow the lead of a fear-mongering, anti-immigrant former president at every turn,” said Padilla. “Our country deserves better.”

“The product that they put forward would deny immigrants fleeing for their lives from the opportunity to seek asylum,” he added.

U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) speaks at a rally against the Emergency National Security Supplemental Appropriations Act in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on Feb. 6, 2024. (Washington Blade photo by Amber Laenen)

The press conference took place hours before Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said the bill is essentially dead because of opposition from House Majority Leader Mike Johnson (R-La.) and a growing number of other Republicans. The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday is also expected to vote on whether to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who was born in Cuba. 

Amber Laenen contributed to this article.

Advertisement
FUND LGBTQ JOURNALISM
SIGN UP FOR E-BLAST

State Department

Protesters demand US fully restore PEPFAR funding

Activists blocked intersection outside State Department on Thursday

Published

on

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 — members of Housing Works, Health GAP, and the Treatment Action Group — 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 “life-saving humanitarian assistance” 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.

“PEPFAR 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.” 

“We 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.”

Continue Reading

The White House

Trump bars trans women and girls from sports

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

Published

on

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 “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports” in the East Room of the White House, the president proclaimed “With this executive order, the war on women’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 “no direct or consistent research” pointing to this conclusion. A different review in 2023 found that post-pubertal differences are “reduced, if not erased, over time by gender affirming hormone therapy.”

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.

“If you’re going to have women’s sports, if you’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 you’re going to preserve women’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 “does expect the Olympic Committee and the NCAA to no longer allow men to compete in women’s sports.”

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.

Continue Reading

California

Los Angeles Blade names new publisher

Alexander Rodriguez brings deep media, business experience to outlet

Published

on

Alexander Rodriguez (Photo courtesy of Alexander Rodriguez)

The Los Angeles Blade, Southern California’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 “On the Rocks” 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. 

“I’m excited to bring my diverse media and business experience to the Los Angeles Blade,” Rodriguez said. “We will continue the Blade’s mission of serving as our community’s news outlet of record during these challenging times and work toward building bridges within our community and beyond.”

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

“We are thrilled to welcome Alexander to the Blade team,” said Kevin Naff, one of the owners of the Los Angeles Blade. “His 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.”

Rodriguez becomes the Los Angeles Blade’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 Masters’s life on Monday, Feb. 10, 7-9 p.m. at the Abbey. 

“Troy’s legacy is in good hands with Alexander at the helm alongside our new local news editor, Gisselle Palomera,” 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 Correspondents’ Association, and the only LGBTQ outlet with a dedicated seat in the White House briefing room.

Alexander Rodriguez can be reached at [email protected].

Continue Reading
Advertisement
Advertisement

Sign Up for Weekly E-Blast

Follow Us @washblade

Advertisement

Popular