GAPIMNY’s membership and our families are currently affected by the immigration system and any reform that may come down. Check out Tony and Rhustie’s story. This is why GAPIMNY engages on issues of immigration in the Asian Pacific Islander (API) community, especially as queer voices are all too often not included as one of the central voices in this discussion.
In early May, the National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance (NQAPIA) facilitated participation of queer API groups, including GAPIMNY, from around the country in a visit to Washington D.C. to speak about the intersection of queer, API, and immigrant issues. We joined other allies in the API communities to participate in a roundtable discussion with the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and the Department of Homeland Security on immigration issues.
On the second day, NQAPIA groups visited many Congress members, including Congress member Grace Meng (NY-6) to continue to urge them to support more humane and inclusive immigration reform, something that is not fully reflected in current drafted legislation.
This is the first lobbying visit that GAPIMNY has participated in, allowing us to connect with other queer API LGBTQ organizations around the country working on immigration issues. Apart from witnessing the current state of immigration reform and the process, we also gained a deeper understanding of the work and issues that other groups are working on. We brought issues that are of importance to our membership such as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), problems with current immigration and visa policies, and making a more inclusive and humane immigration system.
We will continue to engage and create spaces for dialogue on these issues. If you are interested in getting more involved, please contact [email protected].