National
Deportations on hold for foreigners in same-sex marriages
News follows Obama’s determination that DOMA is unconstitutional
An agency within the Department of Homeland Security has put on hold deportation cases for foreign nationals who are in same-sex marriages with American citizens and seeking green cards for U.S. citizenship.
In a statement, Chris Bentley, a spokesperson for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, confirmed on Monday that such cases have put on abeyance until the Department of Homeland Security receives further legal guidance on handling them.
“USCIS has issued guidance to the field asking that related cases be held in abeyance while awaiting final guidance related to distinct issues,” Bentley said.
Last week, Newsweek reported that the heads of two USCIS districts in D.C. and Baltimore had informed lawyers for the American Immigration Lawyers Association that cases in their districts involving married gay and lesbian couples would be put on hold.
A DHS official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the abeyance follows President Obama’s determination in February that the Defense of Marriage Act, which prohibits federal recognition of same-sex marriage, is unconstitutional and the U.S. Justice Department announcement that it would no longer defense the anti-gay statute against litigation in court.
Because of DOMA, American citizens who are married to foreign spouses of the same gender cannot sponsor their spouses for U.S. citizenship — even if the couple lives in a state or jurisdiction that recognizes same-sex marriage.
Despite the new guidance, Bentley maintained USCIS hasn’t issued any change in policy and intends to continue enforcement of DOMA.
“USCIS has not implemented any change in policy and intends to follow the President’s directive to continue enforcing the law,” Bentley said.
Asked what the possible outcomes could be for the upcoming legal guidance, the DHS official replied, “All I can say is that the department’s policy direction is set by the president, but as a matter of policy we don’t comment on legal guidance until it’s final.”
The final legal guidance on the issue is expected to come down from the Department of Homeland Security’s general counsel. The DHS official said he’s hoping the guidance will be issued “imminently,” but doesn’t have a more specific time.
Steve Ralls, spokesperson for Immigration Equality, said the abeyance means that green cards applications that American citizens make for foreign same-sex spouses will be in “pending status” until the courts make a final determination on DOMA’s constitutionality.
Steve Ralls of Immigration Equality (Blade photo by Michael Key)
“So they will not be denied, and while they are pending, the spouses of those that have applied for sponsorship will be able to remain in the thread, so it essentially stops the removal of anyone who has a pending application until the courts have settled the issue of DOMA’s constitutionality,” Ralls said. “It’s a temporary fix, but it’s a temporary fix that will remain in place until DOMA has made its way through the court system.”
In a statement, Rachel Tiven, executive director for Immigration Equality, called the new guidance “terrific news and a significant step forward for the families we work with.”
Earlier this month, Immigration Equality sent letters to the Justice Department and the Department of Homeland Security asking that the Obama administration put on hold the appeals of immigrant visa petitions filed by American citizens on behalf of their same-sex spouses.
“At last, after nearly two decades of work and 10,000 — and counting — couples reaching out to our legal team for help, we hope today’s news is a sign that relief is, indeed, on the way,” Tiven said.
Tiven advised couples who think they may be impacted by the announcement to contact Immigration Equality for free legal counsel on what steps would be appropriate for them.
Ralls added the number of couples who will benefit from the abeyance will in the end depend on the breadth of the ruling from the courts on DOMA.
“So it depends on whether the courts decide that both federal and state DOMAs are unconstitutional or whether just the federal DOMA is unconstitutional, so there are sort of a wide variety of possibilities in terms of who the final resolution will benefit,” Ralls said.
If the federal DOMA is struck down, Ralls noted that married bi-national same-sex couples would have the option of moving to jurisdictions that recognize marriage equality to remain together in the United States.
Christopher Nugent, who’s gay and co-chair of the American Bar Association’s rights of immigrants committee, called the news a “positive development to protect couples from unduly separated through deportation,” but said questions linger on how the immigration courts will handle the news guidance.
“For example, if somebody has already been ordered removed and then marries a U.S. citizen, is the immigration court going to grant a motion to reopen?” Nugent said.
One couple that the USCIS move could benefit is Edwin Blesch, an American citizen, and Tim Smulian, his South African spouse. The couple resides in New York state, where their marriage from South Africa is recognized by the state government. Last week, Immigration Equality filed a green card application on behalf the couple.
“Every day, we live with the very real possibility that, despite following every law and every policy of the United States, Tim will be forced to leave the country, and I will be left without my caretaker and the love of my life,” Blesch said in a statement. “Today’s news gives us great relief, and great hope that we may soon be able to put that worry behind us. For the first time, we can begin to plan the rest of our lives together without fear that we will be torn apart.”
U.S. Supreme Court
Supreme Court to consider bans on trans athletes in school sports
27 states have passed laws limiting participation in athletics programs
The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to hear two cases involving transgender youth challenging bans prohibiting them from participating in school sports.
In Little v. Hecox, plaintiffs represented by the ACLU, Legal Voice, and the law firm Cooley are challenging Idaho’s 2020 ban, which requires sex testing to adjudicate questions of an athlete’s eligibility.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals described the process in a 2023 decision halting the policy’s enforcement pending an outcome in the litigation. The “sex dispute verification process, whereby any individual can ‘dispute’ the sex of any female student athlete in the state of Idaho,” the court wrote, would “require her to undergo intrusive medical procedures to verify her sex, including gynecological exams.”
In West Virginia v. B.P.J., Lambda Legal, the ACLU, the ACLU of West Virginia, and Cooley are representing a trans middle school student challenging the Mountain State’s 2021 ban on trans athletes.
The plaintiff was participating in cross country when the law was passed, taking puberty blockers that would have significantly reduced the chances that she could have a physiological advantage over cisgender peers.
“Like any other educational program, school athletic programs should be accessible for everyone regardless of their sex or transgender status,” said Joshua Block, senior counsel for the ACLU’s LGBTQ and HIV Project. “Trans kids play sports for the same reasons their peers do — to learn perseverance, dedication, teamwork, and to simply have fun with their friends,” Block said.
He added, “Categorically excluding kids from school sports just because they are transgender will only make our schools less safe and more hurtful places for all youth. We believe the lower courts were right to block these discriminatory laws, and we will continue to defend the freedom of all kids to play.”
“Our client just wants to play sports with her friends and peers,” said Lambda Legal Senior Counsel Tara Borelli. “Everyone understands the value of participating in team athletics, for fitness, leadership, socialization, and myriad other benefits.”
Borelli continued, “The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit last April issued a thoughtful and thorough ruling allowing B.P.J. to continue participating in track events. That well-reasoned decision should stand the test of time, and we stand ready to defend it.”
Shortly after taking control of both legislative chambers, Republican members of Congress tried — unsuccessfully — to pass a national ban like those now enforced in 27 states since 2020.
Federal Government
UPenn erases Lia Thomas’s records as part of settlement with White House
University agreed to ban trans women from women’s sports teams
In a settlement with the Trump-Vance administration announced on Tuesday, the University of Pennsylvania will ban transgender athletes from competing and erase swimming records set by transgender former student Lia Thomas.
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights found the university in violation of Title IX, the federal rights law barring sex based discrimination in educational institutions, by “permitting males to compete in women’s intercollegiate athletics and to occupy women-only intimate facilities.”
The statement issued by University of Pennsylvania President J. Larry Jameson highlighted how the law’s interpretation was changed substantially under President Donald Trump’s second term.
“The Department of Education OCR investigated the participation of one transgender athlete on the women’s swimming team three years ago, during the 2021-2022 swim season,” he wrote. “At that time, Penn was in compliance with NCAA eligibility rules and Title IX as then interpreted.”
Jameson continued, “Penn has always followed — and continues to follow — Title IX and the applicable policy of the NCAA regarding transgender athletes. NCAA eligibility rules changed in February 2025 with Executive Orders 14168 and 14201 and Penn will continue to adhere to these new rules.”
Writing that “we acknowledge that some student-athletes were disadvantaged by these rules” in place while Thomas was allowed to compete, the university president added, “We recognize this and will apologize to those who experienced a competitive disadvantage or experienced anxiety because of the policies in effect at the time.”
“Today’s resolution agreement with UPenn is yet another example of the Trump effect in action,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement. “Thanks to the leadership of President Trump, UPenn has agreed both to apologize for its past Title IX violations and to ensure that women’s sports are protected at the university for future generations of female athletes.”
Under former President Joe Biden, the department’s Office of Civil Rights sought to protect against anti-LGBTQ discrimination in education, bringing investigations and enforcement actions in cases where school officials might, for example, require trans students to use restrooms and facilities consistent with their birth sex or fail to respond to peer harassment over their gender identity.
Much of the legal reasoning behind the Biden-Harris administration’s positions extended from the 2020 U.S. Supreme Court case Bostock v. Clayton County, which found that sex-based discrimination includes that which is based on sexual orientation or gender identity under Title VII rules covering employment practices.
The Trump-Vance administration last week put the state of California on notice that its trans athlete policies were, or once were, in violation of Title IX, which comes amid the ongoing battle with Maine over the same issue.
New York
Two teens shot steps from Stonewall Inn after NYC Pride parade
One of the victims remains in critical condition
On Sunday night, following the annual NYC Pride March, two girls were shot in Sheridan Square, feet away from the historic Stonewall Inn.
According to an NYPD report, the two girls, aged 16 and 17, were shot around 10:15 p.m. as Pride festivities began to wind down. The 16-year-old was struck in the head and, according to police sources, is said to be in critical condition, while the 17-year-old was said to be in stable condition.
The Washington Blade confirmed with the NYPD the details from the police reports and learned no arrests had been made as of noon Monday.
The shooting took place in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of Manhattan, mere feet away from the most famous gay bar in the city — if not the world — the Stonewall Inn. Earlier that day, hundreds of thousands of people marched down Christopher Street to celebrate 55 years of LGBTQ people standing up for their rights.
In June 1969, after police raided the Stonewall Inn, members of the LGBTQ community pushed back, sparking what became known as the Stonewall riots. Over the course of two days, LGBTQ New Yorkers protested the discriminatory policing of queer spaces across the city and mobilized to speak out — and throw bottles if need be — at officers attempting to suppress their existence.
The following year, LGBTQ people returned to the Stonewall Inn and marched through the same streets where queer New Yorkers had been arrested, marking the first “Gay Pride March” in history and declaring that LGBTQ people were not going anywhere.
New York State Assemblywoman Deborah Glick, whose district includes Greenwich Village, took to social media to comment on the shooting.
“After decades of peaceful Pride celebrations — this year gun fire and two people shot near the Stonewall Inn is a reminder that gun violence is everywhere,” the lesbian lawmaker said on X. “Guns are a problem despite the NRA BS.”
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