DOMA was put into effect in 1996 by former President Bill Clinton and his administration. The act restricts federal marriage benefits and required inter-state marriage recognition to only heterosexual marriages in the US. The law passed both houses of Congress by large majorities. Section 3 of DOMA is a real doozy. It states that same-sex marriages aren't acknowledged in regards to federal purposes. Meaning same-sex spouses aren't eligible for benefits that heterosexual spouses are, including insurance benefits for government employees, Social Security survivors' benefits, immigration, and the filing of joint tax returns.
As if the issues of tax returns, government insurance, and Social Security benefits wasn't bad enough, it is the immigration part that really causes all kinds of horrible problems in the US. Even though same-sex marriage is now legal in 12 states (Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont, New Hampshire, New York, Maine, Maryland, Washington, Rhode Island, Delaware, and Minnesota) as well as Washington D.C. and 3 Indian Tribes (Coquille Indian Tribe, Suquamish Tribe, and the Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa Indians) DOMA still allows these LEGALLY married bi-national couples to be separated by deportation. While if bi-national heterosexual couples get married in the US, their marriage allows the spouse from outside the US to remain in the US to live, and they are not subject to deportation. The Organization,The DOMA Project, is working to stop this injustice in the US government.
The video below has recently been getting around online and is the very heartbreaking, tear jerking real life story of husbands Jason and David. They have been together for 6 years, married for nearly 1 year, and due to DOMA have been separated 17 times.
Please watch the video and visit the DOMA Project for more information and to find out how you can help.
http://www.domaproject.org/
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