Immigration Equality (organization) facts for kids
Logo of Immigration Equality since 2020
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| Abbreviation | ImEq |
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| Formation | March 3, 1994 |
| Type | NGO (non-governmental agency) |
| Legal status | Non-profit advocacy |
| Purpose | Advocating for equal immigration and asylum rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, (LGBT) and HIV-positive people |
| Headquarters | New York City |
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Executive Director
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Aaron C. Morris |
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Staff
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18 |
| Website | www.ImmigrationEquality.org |
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Immigration Equality is a group in the United States that started in 1994. It is based in New York City. This organization helps and speaks up for people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer (LGBTQ+), and those living with HIV. They work to make sure these individuals are treated fairly within the rules about who can live in the U.S.
The group offers legal help and advice to LGBTQ+ and HIV-positive immigrants. This is especially true for those seeking safety and protection in the U.S. because they face unfair treatment in their home countries. In 2017, Immigration Equality gave over $33 million in free legal help to low-income LGBTQ+ and HIV-positive immigrants. They win almost all of their cases, about 99%.
Contents
Helping People with Legal Issues
Immigration Equality helps LGBTQ+ and HIV-positive immigrants who are looking for safety, fair treatment, and freedom in the United States. Their clients include people seeking protection, couples from different countries, people held in detention, and those without proper documents.
In over 80 countries around the world, it is against the law to be LGBTQ+. Because of who they are, or their HIV status, clients might face unfair or dangerous treatment in their home countries. This fear of harm or even death makes it impossible for them to go back. If they do not have legal permission to stay in the U.S., immigration officials can hold them and send them away. Immigration Equality helps these clients win the right to stay safely or get released from detention.
Clients held in detention centers have sometimes reported being treated badly by other people held there or by guards. Transgender women, who are often placed in male facilities, have reported spending a lot of time alone in isolated rooms.
Historically, many of Immigration Equality's clients came from Jamaica and Mexico. In 2013, after Russia passed an "anti-gay propaganda" law, the number of Russian clients grew quickly. Over the last 20 years, most clients have come from the Caribbean and Latin America. As more countries pass anti-LGBTQ+ laws, more people from Russia, the Middle East, and Sub-Saharan Africa have sought help.
Immigration Equality has a very high success rate, winning 98% of their clients' cases in asylum offices and immigration courts. In 2013, the group helped about 354 clients. They also keep a list of private immigration lawyers who are good at helping LGBTQ+ and HIV-positive people. They also give advice to other lawyers working on cases where a client's LGBTQ+ identity or HIV status is important.
Speaking Up for Change
Immigration Equality works to change policies based on what their clients need. They push for fair immigration laws, policies that include LGBTQ+ people, and for government leaders to be responsible.
Immigration Equality believes several changes are still needed to help LGBTQ+ immigrants. These include stopping the deportation of LGBTQ+ immigrants and removing the strict one-year deadline for applying for asylum. They also want LGBTQ+ people to be included in new immigration plans and for conditions in immigration detention centers to get better. They ask for more ways to avoid detention and for more officials to help with asylum cases faster. They also want the government to recognize all types of families, including those without access to marriage equality, and to offer group protection for LGBTQ+ people stuck abroad.
In September 2014, Immigration Equality held a rally outside the White House. They asked for quick action after President Obama delayed a plan for immigration. Members of the group traveled to Washington, D.C., with clients to share their stories. They also protested in the offices of some House representatives, but these officials refused to meet with them.
Our History
The organization started in 1994. It was founded by Suzanne Goldberg, Noemi Masliah, and Lavi Soloway. At first, it was called the Lesbian and Gay Immigration Rights Task Force.
In 2004, the group officially changed its name to Immigration Equality.
In May 2006, Immigration Equality worked with Human Rights Watch to release a report called "Family, Unvalued." This report focused on the challenges faced by same-sex couples from different countries under U.S. law. It shared stories of couples who hid their relationships because they feared unfair treatment in the immigration process. It also talked about how U.S. immigration policies often did not consider same-sex couples.
Immigration Equality also worked to end a ban that stopped people with HIV from traveling to or moving to the U.S. This ban started in 1987 and became stricter in 1993. In July 2008, President George Bush signed a law to allow the ban to be lifted. In October 2009, President Obama announced that the Department of Health and Human Services would remove HIV from the list of diseases that prevented immigration. The ban was officially lifted in January 2010.
In 2008, Immigration Equality opened an office in Washington, D.C. This happened shortly after the HIV immigration ban was removed, which was one of the group's main goals. That same year, Immigration Equality helped create a guide called "Immigration Law and the Transgender Client." This was the first LGBTQ+ publication from the American Immigration Lawyers Association. The group also won over fifty cases where people feared harm if they were sent back to their home countries.
In 2009, the group created the Immigration Equality Action Fund. This part of the organization focuses on talking to lawmakers in Washington, D.C.
In 2015, Immigration Equality provided more than 32,704 hours of free legal help. In October 2016, Aaron C. Morris became the new executive director.
In May 2015, the Library of Congress chose Immigration Equality's website to be part of its historical collection of internet materials about public policy.
Uniting American Families Act
Immigration Equality has been a main supporter of the Uniting American Families Act (UAFA). This act would allow same-sex "permanent partners" to show documents, like joint tax forms or bank accounts, to prove their relationship. This would let them apply for a green card, just like heterosexual couples can. Immigration Equality has been working for this act since 2000. The group has warned that getting married might actually cause more problems for same-sex couples from different countries.
Currently, 115 members of the House of Representatives and 20 senators support this law.
In October 2020, the United States Department of State stopped its appeals in two court cases, Kiviti v. Pompeo and Mize-Gregg v. Pompeo. Immigration Equality, Lambda Legal, and a law firm called Morgan Lewis & Bockius represented the families in these cases. Federal courts had ruled that the State Department's refusal to recognize children born overseas to married same-sex American citizen couples as U.S. citizens was against the law.
See also
- President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief
