On Monday the group Immigration Equality
filed a lawsuit in federal court on behalf of five married couples
who have tried in vain to sponsor their foreign spouses for green
cards.What’s hindering them more than most couples (and that’s
saying something with the
U.S.’s system) is the fact that they are gay couples. They’re
all legally married couples, mind, but that’s under state
law. And if the drug war reaffirms anything, it’s that feds
rule, states drool.

The big, fat Defense of Marriage Act is still preventing these
couples from receiving any federal benefits or recognition of their
unions, which would includes the fact that their foreign spouses
are immediate relatives who should therefore be sponsorable. This
nonsense, says the lawsuit, is a violation of their constitutional
rights to equal protection.

According to the
New York Daily News, the lawsuit was filed against a whole
mess of big names:

Attorney General Eric Holder; Secretary of Homeland
Security Janet Napolitano; U.S. Citizenship and Immigration
Services director Alejandro Mayorkas; Robert M. Cowan,
director of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services National
Benefits Center; and Daniel Renaud, director of the U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services Vermont Service Center.

This whole federal
ripping apart of families thing has been
happening for a while, in spite of the Obama administration’s
2011 declaration that it will stop defending
DOMA. And whether you’re on the let’s get government out
of marriage entirely camp (sweet), the my morals should be law camp
(not that), or the say, this whole inconsistently in law thing is
kind of indefensible camp (that!), it’s hard to find the reason why
this lawsuit wouldn’t have merit. We’re talking not just positive
benefits, tax breaks, etc. from the state, but the fundamental
right to stick with your partner and (hopefully) true, true love.
DOMA’s death is long overdue.

Reason on
immigration and on
gay marriage; And Reason.tv on “Why Marriage is Winning”