OUR VICTORIES

Mother's Day Present for North Carolina Lesbian Couple: BIA Rejects USCIS "DOMA Denial" of Green Card Petition

May 14th, 2013

Just before Mother's Day this North Carolina family learned that the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) rejected the denial of the marriage-based green card petition they had filed last year.[...]

May 7, 1996: The Day DOMA Was Born

May 7th, 2013

17 Years Ago Today DOMA Was Introduced In Congress. Since it was signed into law by President Clinton it has caused immeasurable harm to lesbian and gay Americans and our families.[...]

VICTORY! Immigration Judge Delays "DOMA Deportation" for Gay Couple for a Third Time, Giving USCIS Another Chance to Approve Their Green Card Petition

May 2nd, 2013

DOMA Project participants, Brian and Alfonso, were due in San Francisco Immigration Court today to face the Immigration Judge, again. Back in March 2012, at their first hearing, Alfonso faced[...]

VICTORY! Long Nightmare Ends for Married Lesbian Couple in Denver, ICE Stops DOMA Deportation

December 3rd, 2012

November was a month of celebrations for Violeta and Sujey Pando, a married lesbian couple living in Denver who have been inseparable since their first date. The month began with[...]

VICTORY! DHS Issues Written Guidance to Stop Deportations of the Spouses and Partners of Gay and Lesbian Americans

October 9th, 2012

We learned today that on October 5, the Principal Legal Advisor to the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency issued long-awaited written guidelines (attached below) clarifying that prosecutorial discretion guidelines[...]

VICTORY! Obama Administration Recognizes Marriages of Gay and Lesbian Binational Couples, Expanding Deportation Policy to LGBT Families

August 3rd, 2012

After a two-year campaign urging the Obama administration to stop the deportations of spouses of gay and lesbian Americans, we welcome the announcement by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)[...]

Victory! Board of Immigration Appeals Refuses to Affirm Denials of Green Card Petitions Filed by Four Gay Couples, Remands for Determination on Eligibility of Marriages

June 19th, 2012

The DOMA Project has won an important, unprecedented victory in the fight for green cards for married gay and lesbian binational couples. In four separate rulings, the Board of Immigration[...]

Victory! Boston Immigration Judge Grants Reprieve To Dwayne and Bolivar, Postpones Deportation Proceedings

May 17th, 2012

Today, a Boston Immigration Judge postponed further deportation proceedings for Dwayne and Bolivar, a married, gay binational couple who have lived together in rural Maine for almost ten years. Overruling[...]

Brian & Anton Attend Green Card Interview in Philadelphia Today, Exactly One Year After Stopping a Valentine's Day Deportation to Indonesia

February 13th, 2012

It is truly amazing what can happen in one year. One year ago my Anton and I were fighting for a chance just to remain together in this country. We[...]

Victory for Monica & Cristina! Government Closes Deportation Case Against Married Lesbian Couple in New York

December 6th, 2011

Immigration & Customs Enforcement Closes Deportation Case Against Argentinean Lesbian, Monica Alcota, Based on Ties to Community Including Marriage to her Spouse, Cristina Ojeda First Case of a Married Gay Couple[...]

Victory for Doug and Alex! Government Drops Deportation Proceedings Against Married Gay California Couple

August 20th, 2011

San Francisco Immigration Judge Grants Government Motion to Close Deportation Case Against Alex Benshimol We learned today that deportation proceedings that threatened to tear apart Alex Benshimol and Douglas Gentry, a[...]

Victory for Sujey and Violeta Pando! Judge Halts Deportation, Sets January Date to Consider Application Based on Their Marriage

August 19th, 2011

Lavi Soloway: "Today Denver Immigration Judge Mimi Tsankov halted the deportation of Sujey Pando and scheduled a new hearing to consider an application based on her marriage to her U.S.[...]

Raúl gets his Wings: U.S. Embassy Grants Tourist Visa to Travel with Brad from Ecuador to the US in August

August 2nd, 2011

Raúl and BradA happy update from Brad, from Cuenca, Ecuador. For many gay Americans with a partner abroad, obtaining a visitor's visa can be an elusive and frustrating process.[...]

Victory for Doug & Alex! San Francisco Immigration Judge Postpones Deportation Hearing for More Than Two Years

July 13th, 2011

Alex and Doug attend rally this morning on Montgomery Street across from San Francisco Immigration CourtFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 13, 2011Media contact: Justin Page/Lavi Soloway at [email protected] or 925-408-0662Immigration Judge[...]

Good News For Rodrigo & Edwin: Baltimore Immigration Judge Re-Opens Proceedings, Cancelling Order of Removal

July 5th, 2011

Earlier this year, in a cliff-hanger, Rodrigo Martinez was almost taken into custody and deported to El Salvador. Now, in the first case of its kind involving a married binational[...]

HISTORIC VICTORY: Immigration & Customs Enforcement Closes Deportation Proceedings Against Henry Velandia

June 29th, 2011

Josh and Henry have led the fight to stop the deportations of spouses of lesbian and gay American citizens Read our press release here. Link to this article here. (Photo: Jonathan Ystad) [...]

Victory for Sveta & Andi in Chicago! Lesbian Couple Stops DOMA Deportation by Bravely Fighting For Their Marriage and Their Married Name, Alongside Asylum Claim

June 21st, 2011

Readers of this site will recall this earlier post, "Sveta & Andi: Together for 11 Years, Married Lesbian Couple in Illinois Faces June Deportation Hearing." Sveta had been legally in[...]

Making History: Married, Gay Binational Couple Goes to Their Green Card Interview in San Francisco

June 15th, 2011

Jon Carr and Sergio Suhett after their green card interview Tuesday at the U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services building in downtown San Francisco Jon Anthony Carr and Sergio Suhett met in 1995[...]

San Francisco Chronicle: Jon and Sergio's Story

June 15th, 2011

Sergio and Jon were the first binational couple to join Stop The Deportations. Jon filed a green card petition for Sergio in July 2010 and almost 11 months later they[...]

Marriage News Watch Interview: Lavi Soloway on Josh & Henry's Win and Other Recent Developments

May 18th, 2011

From Matt Baume at Marriage News Watch: Everyone was stunned a few days ago when Attorney General Eric Holder intervened in gay couple's deportation case. The government was about to[...]

Josh & Henry on CNN: "We came very close to having our marriage destroyed"

May 17th, 2011

From CNN.COM:Last year, Velandia, a dancer from Venezuela, and Vandiver, a Princeton graduate student, were legally married in Connecticut. But under federal law—the Defense of Marriage Act—immigration authorities don’t recognize[...]

Victory for Josh & Henry: New York Times Coverage

May 8th, 2011

Fred R Conrad/The New York TimesJudge Gives Immigrant in Same-Sex Marriage a Reprieve From DeportationBy Julia Preston, New York TimesAn immigration judge in Newark on Friday suspended the deportation of[...]

Victory for Josh & Henry: Judge Halts Deportation Proceedings, Citing Pending Marriage-Based Petition and Recent Decision by Attorney General

May 6th, 2011

On Friday, May 6, an immigration judge in Newark, NJ, issued a ruling on the deportation of Henry Velandia, a Venezuelan citizen legally married in 2010 to Josh Vandiver, an[...]