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 helps people. It started in 1994 and is based in New York City. This organization works to support and represent people who are LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender) and those who are HIV-positive. They help these individuals with issues related to the immigration system.
The group offers advice and legal help to LGBT and HIV-positive immigrants. This is especially true for those seeking asylum, which means they are looking for safety in the U.S. because they face danger in their home countries. In 2017, Immigration Equality gave over $33 million in free legal help. This assistance went to LGBT and HIV-positive immigrants who had low incomes. The organization has a very high success rate, winning 99% of its cases.
Contents
Helping People Directly with Legal Support
Immigration Equality helps LGBT and HIV-positive immigrants find safety and fair treatment in the United States. Their clients include people seeking asylum. They also help couples and families where one partner is from another country. The group also assists people who are held in detention centers or who do not have legal papers.
In more than 80 countries around the world, it is against the law to be LGBT. Because of who they are, many clients face danger in their home countries. They might be abused, tortured, or even killed. This fear makes them flee to the United States. Without legal immigration status, they could be held by immigration officials and sent back. Immigration Equality helps these clients win asylum or get released from detention. This allows them to live safely and freely in the U.S.
Sometimes, clients held in detention centers have reported abuse. This abuse can come from other people held there or from guards. Transgender women, who are often housed with men, have reported spending a lot of time alone.
Historically, many of Immigration Equality's clients came from Jamaica. Mexico was the next largest group. In 2013, after Russia passed a law against "gay propaganda", more Russian clients started seeking help.
Over the past 20 years, most clients have come from the Caribbean and Latin America. As more countries pass laws against LGBT people, the number of individuals seeking help from Russia, the Middle East, and parts of Africa has grown.
Immigration Equality has a 98% success rate for clients in asylum offices and immigration courts. In 2013, the group helped about 354 clients. They also keep a list of private immigration lawyers who understand LGBT and HIV-positive issues. This helps people find legal representation. The organization also guides other lawyers. They help them with asylum applications or other immigration cases where a client's LGBT or HIV-positive identity is important.
Working for Change: Advocacy Efforts
Immigration Equality works to change policies to help their clients. They push for fair immigration laws. They also want laws and policies that include LGBT people. The group asks leaders in Washington, D.C., to be responsible for their decisions.
Immigration Equality believes several changes are still needed to help the LGBT immigrant community. They want to stop sending LGBT immigrants back to dangerous countries. They also want to remove the strict one-year deadline for applying for asylum. The group advocates for including LGBT people in new immigration reforms. They also want better conditions in immigration detention centers. They push for more options instead of detention. The organization also wants to reduce the long wait times for asylum cases. This can be done by hiring more officials. They also want the government to recognize all types of families, including those without access to marriage equality. Finally, they want special protections for LGBT people stuck in other countries.
In September 2014, Immigration Equality held a rally outside the White House. They asked for quick action after President Obama delayed a decision on immigration. Members of the group traveled to Washington, D.C., with clients. They shared their stories and protested in the offices of some House representatives. However, these representatives did not meet with the activists.
History of Immigration Equality
The organization began 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. They released a report called "Family, Unvalued." This report focused on the challenges faced by same-sex couples where one partner was not a U.S. citizen. The report showed how U.S. immigration rules often ignored these couples. It also explained how LGBT people sometimes did not fit into the existing visa system.
Immigration Equality also worked to end a ban. This ban stopped people with HIV from traveling to or moving to the U.S. The 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 worked with the Transgender Law Center. They wrote a guide called "Immigration Law and the Transgender Client." This was the first LGBT-focused publication from the American Immigration Lawyers Association. Immigration Equality also won over fifty political asylum cases. These cases helped people who feared danger 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 working with the government.
In 2015, Immigration Equality provided over 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. It was added to a special 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 proposed law would allow same-sex "permanent partners" to prove their relationship. They could use documents like joint tax forms or bank accounts. This would let them apply for a green card, just like heterosexual couples can. Immigration Equality has been working for this law since 2000.
The group has warned same-sex binational couples about getting married. Sometimes, getting married could make things more difficult for them under current laws. For example, if someone applies for a temporary visa, being married to a U.S. citizen could suggest they plan to stay permanently. This could cause problems with their visa application.
In July 2007, Rachel B. Tiven, the executive director at the time, was interviewed on a TV show. She talked about the proposed law.
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. These cases were Kiviti v. Pompeo and Mize-Gregg v. Pompeo. Federal courts had ruled that the State Department could not refuse to recognize children born overseas to married same-sex American citizen couples as U.S. citizens. Immigration Equality, Lambda Legal, and the law firm Morgan Lewis & Bockius represented the families in these cases.
See also
- President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief
