The Immigration and Customs Enforcement ( ICE ) office in Philadelphia has refused to stop the deportation that would separate Anton Tanumihardja, an Indonesian citizen, from his American husband, Brian Andersen, according to a press release from the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation ( GLAAD ) .
This development is still happening despite new guidelines from the Obama administration that aim to set aside all low-priority deportation cases and keep all families together—including gay and lesbian couples.
Specifically, ICE rejected a request for "deferred action," which allows individuals meeting specific criteria to stay in the country indefinitely, although they are technically deportable. At a meeting Oct. 7 with a Philadelphia deportation officer, Tanumihardja was told that unless there was some intervention in his case that reversed this decision, he would face deportation by January.
The couple's attorney, Lavi Soloway, said, "We are shocked and disappointed that ICE has failed to implement the guidelines set forth by this administration. ... The administration must take immediate action to ensure that the new deportation policy is being implemented fairly and consistently by ICE deportation officers in local offices, or this policy announcement is meaningless."
