A married, gay bi-national couple has received a reprieve from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services today. Bradford Makk and Anthony Wells faced separation when Makk's visa expired after decades of lawful residency. The couple has lived together for nearly 20 years in San Francisco. Health problems associated with HIV prevented Wells from accompanying Makk in his planned return to native Australia. The couple's plight touched on a national nerve and the San Francisco Chronicle reported it was their most widely shared story of 2011.
Now the Chronicle is reporting:
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services issued a letter to Makk today saying he has been granted “deferred action” on his case for two years. The letter said the action is “an exercise of prosecutorial discretion” that allows the agency not to pursue deportation for a specific period. Makk met multiple conditions of the agency’s new guidelines for immigration agents to prioritize deportation cases, including family ties, status as a primary caregiver, lack of criminal record and his long period of legal residence under a series of visas that eventually expired.
Pelosi broke the news to the couple herself today, and issued a statement calling the resolution of the case “a personal victory for Bradford and Anthony” that “keeps this loving couple together.” She said she would continue to fight for repeal of DOMA.
House Minority Leader Pelosi's personal leadership in the case has been credited by many for the win.
In August she wrote:
“It is my hope that today’s action by the Administration will result in the suspension of immigration proceedings against gays and lesbians who have petitioned for their spouses, such as my constituents, Bradford Wells and Anthony John Makk, who face separation because of the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act.
The Defense of Marriage Act continues to stand in the way of lawfully wedded LGBT couples and access to a legal path to immigration.
Steve Ralls from Immigration Equality reports on their blog:
“I just got off the phone with Bradford and Anthony and, as you can imagine, they are enormously relieved and incredibly grateful. Thanks in large part to Leader Pelosi’s personal interest, and intervention, in their case – and hard work on their behalf by Senator Feinstien – Bradford and Anthony can now rest assured that, for at least the foreseeable future, they will remain here together in the United States. Though this is not a permanent solution, it is a meaningful and significant one that lifts the cloud of uncertainty that has hung over them for so long. They will not be separated, and Bradford will continue to have his caretaker at his side. We all remain committed to continuing to work for a permanent solution for all couples in their situation, but this is, indeed, a hopeful sign that things are changing.”
It is a two-year reprieve, so perhaps we can hope that the Defense of Marriage Act is
repealed or
struck down in court before Wells and Makk, or other couples, face another deadline.