ICE Forced Same-Sex Couple to Separate

Sing Tao Daily

SAN FRANCISCO – Shirley Tan and her same-sex partner Jay Mercado have lived together for 23 years and raised their 12-year-old twin boys. The Sing Tao Daily reports U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) recently raided their house and arrested Tan, a Filipino, because although she married Mercado, a U.S. citizen, in 2004 at San Francisco City Hall, federal law does not allow immigrants to obtain family-based legal status through their same-sex spouses. According to the newspaper, Congresswoman Jackie Speier said she would support legislation to give same-sex couples immigration rights. Others point out that such a law would make immigration fraud easier. Because of the immigration issues, many same-sex couples have moved out of the United States to live in other countries.