Quigley Says Immigration Reform Can't Be 'Comprehensive' Without LGBT Rights
WASHINGTON Last night, Congressman Mike Quigley (D-IL) urged leadership and his colleagues to work toward inclusion of domestic partnerships in comprehensive immigration reform and the principles of the Uniting American Families Act (UAFA). UAFA amends immigration laws by extending the rights currently afforded to permanent partners of United States citizens to bi-national same-sex couples and their children as well. Quigley delivered the following speech on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives:
"Madam Speaker, as we begin to consider substantial comprehensive immigration proposals, I strongly urge my colleagues to remember what it means to achieve - comprehensive - reform.
We cannot forget a very important immigrant group in our country: Bi-national, LGBT couples.
If we are to consider a proposal deemed - comprehensive - we must truly include everyone.
We must mean it when we say that you can be an American no matter the color of your skin, your religion, or who you love.
Congressman Honda has been courageous enough to tackle the issue of amending the nation's immigration laws to allow U.S. citizens and permanent residents to sponsor their same-sex partners for family-based immigration through the Uniting American Families Act.
In this debate, we've talked about keeping families together, but we cannot turn a blind eye to the children who have been taken from a family because they have two moms or two dads and one doesn't live in this country.
We talk about doing what is right, what is fair, and what is just - but we neglect to imagine the pain and the suffering these families are going through because we as a government think it's our right to tell people who they can love."
A longtime and tireless leader in the fight for equality, Quigley has emerged as a national advocate for the LGBT community, cosponsoring over a dozen bills that work toward equal rights in his first six months in office. Quigley also spoke recently at a Washington, DC rally calling for comprehensive immigration reform.
Following is a list of organizations, multi-national corporations, religious institutions, labor unions, and businesses that support the Uniting American Families Act.
National Organizations:
General
Democrats Abroad
U.S. Conference of Mayors
United States Students Association (USSA)
LGBT Organizations
CenterLink: The Community of LGBT Centers
COLAGE
Council for Global Equality
Family Equality Council
Gay Men's Health Crisis (GMHC)
Gays and Lesbians in Foreign Affairs Agencies (GLIFAA)
Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN)
Human Rights Campaign (HRC)
Immigration Equality
Lambda Legal
Love Exiles Foundation
Love Sees No Borders
National Center for Lesbian Rights
National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE)
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF)
Out & Equal Workplace Advocates (Out & Equal)
Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG)
Stonewall Democrats
Unid@s LGBT
United Nations Gay and Lesbian Organization (UN GLOBE)
Civil Rights, Civil Liberties & Immigration Organizations
American Families United (AFU)
American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC)
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA)
Amnesty International
Anti-Defamation League
Asian Pacific American Legal Center (APALC)
Immigrant Legal Resource Center
Legal Momentum
Mexican-American Legal Defense Education Fund (MALDEF)
National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)
National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC)
National Immigration Forum (NIF)
National Immigration Law Center (NILC)
National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health
National Coalition for Immigrant Women's Rights (NCWIR)
People for the American Way
Professional Associations
American Bar Association (ABA)
American Council of Personnel (ACIP)
American Psychological Association (APA)
Labor
Association of Flight Attendants CWA
Hotel Employees & Restaurant Employees International Union (HERE)
Office & Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU)
Pride at Work - AFL-CIO
Service Employees International Union (SEIU)
Corporations
Cisco Systems, Inc.
Intel Corporation
Omnicom
Pfizer Inc.
Faith Organizations
American Jewish Committee (AJC)
Call to Action
Church World Service, Immigration and Refugee Program
Clergy United, Inc.
The Episcopal Church
Friends Committee on National Legislation
Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS)
Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism (RAC)
United Methodist Church
Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations
Local Organizations:
AIDS Legal Council of Chicago
AIDS Legal Referral Project
AIDS Project Los Angeles
Asian Americans for Civil Rights and Equality
Asian Pacific American Legal Center of Southern California
California Democratic Council
California Faculty Association
California Nurses Association
Congress of California Seniors
El Cerrito Democratic Club
Eleanor Roosevelt Democratic Club
Equal Rights Advocates
Equality California
Gray Panthers
Kol Ami Congregation
Legal Aid Society- Employment Law Center
Legal Momentum- California
Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center
La Mesa Community Church
Marriage Equality California
Metropolitan Community Church Los Angeles
Metropolitan Community Church San Francisco
Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund- California
Older Women's League of California
Our Family Coalition
Out and Equal Workplace Advocates
Parents and Friends of Lesbian and Gays (PFLAG) Pasadena, Ventura County
People for the American Way- California
Pioneer Congregational Church
Pride at Work- Southern California
San Diego Democratic Club
San Francisco AIDS Foundation
San Francisco Immigrant Rights Commission
Santa Clara Valley American Immigration Lawyers Association
The Center- San Francisco
SIREN
State of California Commission on the Status of Women
State of California Office of the Attorney General
Stonewall Democratic Club of Greater Sacramento
Stonewall Young Democrats of Los Angeles
Transgender Law Center
Wesley United Methodist Church
West Hollywood Presbyterian Church
City Councils/State Assemblies:
The California State Legislature
The City of West Hollywood
The City of Los Angeles
The City of San Francisco
The City of New York