Love Sees No Borders - Warning: INS and FBI Join Forces

Warning: Same-Sex Binational Couples Threatened
INS and FBI to Join Forces to Track Down Deportation Violators

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SUNNYVALE, Calif., Dec. 06, 2001 - Love Sees No Borders, an educational organization focused on raising awareness of the plight of same-sex binational couples and their fight to remain together, today issued a warning to binational same-sex couples in which the foreign half is in violation of deportation orders that the INS and the FBI have joined forces to track down and deport over 300,000 foreign nationals living in U.S. despite these orders.

"Sadly, a potentially large number of same-sex binational couples rely on overstayed visas because there are no other means for them to remain together in the U.S.," said Leslie Bulbuk of Love Sees No Borders. "Unlike Americans in opposite-sex relationships, Americans in same-sex relationships are denied the basic human right of sponsoring their partners. As of this moment, thousands of Americans around the country are suffering tremendous pain and anguish because their life-partners are being hunted down by law enforcement authorities."

The order applies to foreigners who were in the United States illegally and have either skipped their deportation hearings -- resulting in an order to leave the country -- or who appeared in court to receive deportation orders but subsequently vanished while out on bond. The INS admitted that this is a move to tighten domestic enforcement of immigration laws, which has been an area of concern for lawmakers since the Sept. 11 attacks on American soil.

"This is another clear example of how the aftermath of Sept. 11 affects our community," said Marta Donayre of Love Sees No Borders. "We are a large, yet mostly invisible group composed of people who have very good reasons to be extremely fearful, and therefore they hide from the public eye, giving society the false impression that this is not a problem. It is time the U.S. corrects the injustices imposed on American citizens and their foreign partners because the U.S. lags behind many industrialized nations in recognizing our relationships for immigration purposes."

About Love Sees No Borders
Love Sees No Borders is an organization dedicated to promoting awareness of the plight of same-sex binational couples in the United States. Our work includes media outreach, public speaking and other educational activities. For more information about the organization and how to support our efforts through a donation, please visit www.loveseesnoborders.org.