Judge Delays Immigration Decision for Gay Princetonian

Henry Velandia, the 27-year-old Princeton man who faces a possible deportation order back to his native Venezuela, received a temporary reprieve on Friday when a federal immigration judge ruled that because the federal government may soon change its definition of marriage, Velandia's case will be continued until December.

Friday’s ruling allows Velandia to stay in the United States with his spouse, Josh Vandiver, whom he married in Connecticut on Aug. 29, 2010 for at least seven more months.

"Henry's deportation still looms over us, but after a deep breath we'll come back and advocate," said Vandiver, 29, a doctoral candidate in political theory at Princeton University.

The two men are legally married, but because the federal government does not recognize the marriage, Vandiver cannot sponsor Velandia for a green card.

On Thursday in a different case, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder vacated a deportation for New Jersey resident Paul Wilson Dorman, whom he said likely would have been allowed to stay in the U.S. had he been married to a woman, not a man, according to the Huffington Post.

Holder said he would ask the federal Board of Immigration Appeals to reconsider Dorman’s application and "determine whether his deportation order was based on the Defense of Marriage Act, a 1996 law that bans same-sex marriages."

In February, U.S. President Barack Obama said the U.S. would no longer defend the Defense of Marriage Act, yet the deportation of non-American spouses in bi-national couples continues.

Lavi Soloway, the Princeton couple’s attorney, spoke at a rally outside of the Peter W. Rodino, Jr. Federal Building on Broad Street in Newark before Friday’s hearing. He called on Obama to act on behalf of the tens of thousands of bi-national couples in the U.S. who live in fear of deportation, despite the legalization of gay marriage in five states and the District of Columbia.

“What the President can do is immediately stop all deportations under the Defense of Marriage Act,” said Soloway, who in 2010 launched "Stop the Deportations" advocating for a moratorium on deporting spouses of gay and lesbian Americans.  

Vandiver and Velandia said they never anticipated becoming the face of bi-national deportations.

"We never thought of ourselves as activists but when you find yourself being ripped apart from your husband, you have to stand up for what you believe is right," Velandia said.

The two men met more than four years ago on a social networking site and had their first date at Winberie Restaurant in Palmer Square, Princeton.

Velandia, a ballet, jazz, modern dance and salsa dancer, founded HotSalsaHot, which is affiliated with both Princeton Dance and Theatre Studio off Route 1 and at the YWCA in Princeton.

U.S. Rep. Rush Holt (D-NJ) issued a statement late Friday afternoon saying he is pleased that Velandia will not face immediate deportation, yet the case underscores the ongoing injustice and discrimination that many same-sex couples face.

“Although I hope that federal courts will soon rule the so-called Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional, I will continue to push for its repeal so that Henry, Josh, and others like them may plan their futures with confidence and hope,” Holt said.

Soloway has filed two petitions in immigration court on Velandia’s behalf. The first is an I-130, a petition for alien relative, in this case a spouse, to stay in the U.S. The other is an application for asylum.

If by Velandia’s December court date, the federal government is still deporting foreign spouses of American citizens based on the Defense of Marriage Act, Velandia’s legal team only option will be to petition the court for Velandia’s stay in the U.S. on the basis of asylum. 

Soloway said if Velandia were to eventually be deported, he would be unable to return to the U.S. for 10 years.

Vandiver said no matter what happens, he will continue to fight for his husband to stay in the U.S.

“Henry always says ‘When someone throws up an obstacle, just go over it.’ I try to live by that.”

“He inspires me," Vandiver said.