LGBTQ Immigration

Hello CAPACD members,

Congratulation on the 10th year anniversary and growing stronger!

Since immigration is one of the issues that NCAPACD is supporting/taking, I'm writing in hopes to gain NCAPACD support in one of presssing issue the Filipino Community is being faced with: Immigration rights of LGBTIQ

On Friday, April 3, 2009, Shirley Tan was threatened with deportation and separation from family which included her life partner, Jaylynn “Jay” Mercado, her 12 year old twin sons, and Jay’s 76 year old mother, of whom she was the primary care giver. Tan was unable to be petitioned for U.S. citizenship by her life partner of 23 years, Mercado, because the U.S. federal law does not recognize their union as a family based on their identification as women and their partnership as lesbians. Congresswoman Jackie Speier (CA-D) was able to postpone her deportation until April 22, 2009.



Senator Feinstein introduced a very rare private bill on behalf of Shirley Tan; Shirley will not have to leave the USA for now and hopefully never. The essence of its introduction is that Tan does not have to leave the USA on May 10th, in terms of the voluntary order issued by DHS. This enables her to stay in the USA, legally, until the private bill passes ( a rare occurrence)- and if it does not come up for a vote then she can stay for the duration of this Congress’s session, which has approximately a year and nine months left. However Shirleys ultimate saviour will be UAFA and nothing else!



This is unbelievably miraculous and indeed an extraordinary measure on behalf of the family. This also gives all our wonderful activists, LGBTIQ organizations, and community supporters an opportunity to hit the streets, the phones, the faxes, the e-mails, the blogs etc. and to fight like crazy for the Uniting American families ACT (UAFA) – in truth the only real long term option for Shirley and the 40,000 other couples/families in this dire situation.

A few articles are link below to give you Shirley Tan background/story and what's happening at the White House:



http://oblogdeeoblogda.wordpress.com/2009/05/27/breaking-shirley-tan-invited-to-uafa-hearing/



http://www.gmanews.tv/story/160082/Pinay-Lesbian-couple-now-at-the-forefront-of-LGBT-movement-in-US



http://oblogdeeoblogda.wordpress.com/2009/06/03/senator-arlen-specter-d-pacomes-on-board/


http://oblogdeeoblogda.wordpress.com/2009/04/22/senator-dianne-feinstein-et-al-save-shirley-tan/



So, when we talk about Immigration, please don't forget the LGBTIQ community and include them in the advocacy efforts. All the help and support NCAPACD can provide is greatly appreciated.



In solidarity,



Angelica Cabande

SoMa Community Action Network (SOMCAN)

Director of Organizing

415.202.5689 direct office



www.somcan.org

Pride & Heritage - Save the Date for May 2nd!

Please Join Us for Pride & Heritage Celebration on May 2nd, 2009!

Come celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month with LGBTQ Asian/South Asian/Pacific Islander folks and allies from the metro DC area. The program will include dinner, performances, presentation of community awards, and a special recognition for founders of our coalition's organizations!

TICKETS ARE ON SALE NOW!!

Location: Christ Church, Washington Parish; 620 G St. SE, Washington, DC
Date and Time: Saturday, May 2; 6:30-10:00pm
To purchase tickets, please visit www.dcprideandheritage.org
For more info, please contact dcprideandheritage@gmail.com

******************************************************
BUY YOUR TICKETS EARLY!! - On sale at www.dcprideandheritage.org :
April 11 through midnight April 22 - $15 Early Bird Online Special
April 23 through midnight May 1 - $20 Regular Online
May 2, 6:30pm - $25 At the Door
Tables of 8 can be purchased at 15% off applicable ticket prices through April 24. For more information, please contact Hyacinth Alvaran at 650.353.0978 or dcprideandheritage@gmail.com.

Please note, a cash bar will cater beverages at the event at the following prices:

Mixed Drinks $5
Wine $4
Beer $3
Water $2
Soda $1

We welcome ticketed guests to volunteer May 2nd to arrive early and help setup for the event or stay after to help breakdown and cleanup. Please contact dcprideandheritage@gmail.com if interested.

We look forward to meeting you at Pride and Heritage Celebration 2009!!!

Sincerely,
2009 Pride and Heritage Celebration Committee

Pride & Heritage (P&H) is a coalition of local community-based organizations serving the Asian/Pacific Islander (A/PI) and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) communities in the greater Washington DC metropolitan area.

The Intersex Files (Gender Fusions workshop!)

The LGBTQ Office of Culture & Community invites you...

to a mind-opening, eyebrow-raising, experience-stretching presentation by Gender Fusions Headliner, Del LaGrace Volcano, a transgressive gender variant visual artist hailing from London & Stockholm!

THE INTERseX FILES:
An Idiot’s Guide to Resisting Normalcy with a Smile
With visceral pleasure, Gender Fusions Headliner Del LaGrace Volcano presents herms, merms and other genderqueer terms which are sometimes confounding, but as Zippy the Pinhead said, "Confusion is a small price to pay for social progress". Join Del LaGrace Volcano in a slideshow presentation about the intersex community, followed by an interactive gender discussion & workshop.

Volcano’s photographic books include: Femmes of Power: Exploding Queer Femininities: Exploding Queer Femininities, The Drag King Book, Sublime Mutations, Sex Works: 1978-2005 & more. To learn more about his projects and artistic work, visit his website at http://www.dellagracevolcano.com

Friday, April 17, 2009
2:00 - 4:00PM
Hokin Lecture Hall
623 S. Wabash
Free & open to the public

Questions? Email lgbtq@colum.edu or call 312.369.8594

Co-sponsored by the Center for Teaching Excellence and Ellen Stone Belic Institute for the Study of Women & Gender in the Arts and Media, Columbia College Chicago

In case you want to read on, a bit more about Del LaGrace Volcano...
As a gender variant visual artist I access 'technologies of gender' in order to amplify rather than erase the hermaphroditic traces of my body. I name myself. A gender abolitionist. A part time gender terrorist. An intentional mutation and intersex by design, (as opposed to diagnosis), in order to distinguish my journey from the thousands of intersex individuals who have had their 'ambiguous' bodies mutilated and disfigured in a misguided attempt at 'normalization'. I believe in crossing the line as many times as it takes to build a bridge we can all walk across.

George Takei: Infinity Awesome

Quick blurb; George did a phone interview and spoke on some awesome topics. My favorites are listed:

Q. What was it like writing your autobiography?

A. My primary motivation was I wanted to talk about my boyhood behind the barbed-wire fences of American internment camps. People east of the Rockies seem to know little about that dark period of American history (after Pearl Harbor) when American citizens were summarily rounded up and imprisoned with no charges, no trial and no due process. I was 4 years old when we were picked up. I still remember soldiers with bayonets stomping up to our front door in Los Angeles and ordering us out. My mother was crying. We were taken to horse stables to live because the camps weren’t built yet.

Q. In 2005, you came out as a gay man, which many consider a very bold step for an actor.

A. I was living a closeted gay life at the beginning of my career. When you’re going for roles there are so many factors for decision-making — too short, too tall, too fat, too skinny, too young, too old — and I didn’t want to add “too gay” to the list of reasons they could reject me. But you come to a point where you get into a serious relationship and you want to bring your significant other to the party where everyone else is bringing their girlfriend or their wife.

Then in 2005, something important happened in California. Both houses of our Legislature passed the same-sex marriage bill, which was a historic event. All that was required was the signature of our governor (Arnold Schwarzenegger), who had campaigned by saying “I’m from Hollywood, I’m comfortable with gays and lesbians.” When he reneged, there was outrage. I felt I needed to speak out with my voice. I needed to be authentic.

Read more here

Prop 8 - The "List"

So there was a hugggggeeee campaign over the Prop 8 measure in California. Long story short, if Prop 8 passed, gay marriage would become unconstitutional; therefore, invalidating thousands of marriages between gay couples in CA.

As for myself? I'm against Prop 8. The divorce rate is rather high in the U.S. and if there are gay couples who want to get married, I say go for it. So who wants to see THE list of people for donated money FOR the Prop 8 campaign? Oh yes I know you wanna see! Head over here for the list.

GAY OLE JAMBOREE!

GAY OLE JAMBOREE!

A rockin’ rollickin’ welcome to the new LGBTQ Office...
Come mix & mingle with other glbt students & our allies--and see our shiny new digs!
Kick back to the tunes, beats & rhymes with a line-up of Columbia’s own glbt singer-songwriters & poets.
Bring friends and honeys. Or be sassy & solo.

WHEN? March 4, 2009
WHERE? 618 S. Michigan Ave., 4th Floor
TIME? 7:00PM - 9:00PM

It’ll be cozy! It’ll be rockin! It’ll be a jammin’ good time.

And yes, of course, there will be GAY SNAXXX.

Questions? Email us back or call the LGBTQ Office at: 312.369.8594

Love,
The Gay Ole Team
@ the LGBTQ Office of Culture & Community