United States Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., has announced a plan that would let same-sex binational couples become citizens in the same manner that their heterosexual counterparts do.
Last December, Windy City Times ran that Gutierrez, along with members of several caucuses, had introduced HR 4321, The Comprehensive Immigration Reform for America's Security and Prosperity Act of 2009 ( CIR ASAP ) . In the piece, it was pointed out that the act did not "include workers or same-sex couples." The American Civil Liberties Union praised Gutierrez for introducing the bill but urged that any Senate CIR bill be truly "comprehensive" by ensuring parity for all U.S. families, heterosexual and gay.
Gutierrez will make a formal announcement Monday, May 24, at 12 p.m. at the Hoover-Leppen Theatre at the Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted. He will be joined by Congressmen Mike Quigley, D-Ill., and Jared Polis, D-Colo. Polis is openly gay.
