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Sep. 18th, 2003 08:39 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mousmeCanada's first legally married couple were refused entry into the United States by a border official who wouldn't accept their family customs clearance form.
Kevin Bourassa and Joe Varnell of Toronto were traveling to Georgia to speak at a conference sponsored by the Gill Foundation.
According to the couple, they abandoned their trip at Toronto's Pearson International Airport when the customs official insisted they fill out separate forms.
After complaining to a supervisor, the men were told that they wouldn't be allowed into the United States as a family because the country does not recognize same-sex couples.
"We had to make a difficult decision," Bourassa said. "We could have filled out separate forms. We felt that would have been an affront to our dignity, so we went back home."
David Thompson, a spokesman for Marriage Equality New York, wasn't surprised by the incident. "Unfortunately, what Kevin and Joe experienced is typical of what American couples go through all the time," he said. "The law and the policy of the country is that gay couples are legal strangers to one another. We aren't even allowed to stand together going through immigration.
"Couples who marry in Canada, and then demand recognition of their marriage in the United States, help the marriage fight here by focusing attention on the fundamental injustice of current U.S law," he added.
Bourassa, an advocate for same-sex marriages, and Varnell, a banking manager, were married in 2001.
Same-sex marriage is legal in the provinces of British Columbia and Ontario. The Canadian national government has drafted legislation that redefines marriage as a union between two persons, but it won't be introduced to Parliament until the Supreme Court of Canada finishes reviewing the proposed legislation's constitutionality.
The customs incident comes on the heels the Canadian Parliament's narrow defeat earlier this week of a motion defining marriage as a union between a man and a woman.
Doug Elliot, the couple's lawyer, said he spoke to Canada's foreign minister about the incident.
Elliot also indicated that he was investigating whether any legal action on behalf of his clients is warranted.
"We can't force the United States to change its laws on same-sex marriage," the lawyer said. "But we can insist that Canadians be treated with respect and that Canadian law regarding family recognition be respected."
Evan Wolfson, executive director of Freedom to Marry, said that, as wrong as the incident was, "many Canadian and American couples have traveled between the two countries without incident. The solution, of course, is to end discrimination on both sides of the border."
Kevin Bourassa and Joe Varnell of Toronto were traveling to Georgia to speak at a conference sponsored by the Gill Foundation.
According to the couple, they abandoned their trip at Toronto's Pearson International Airport when the customs official insisted they fill out separate forms.
After complaining to a supervisor, the men were told that they wouldn't be allowed into the United States as a family because the country does not recognize same-sex couples.
"We had to make a difficult decision," Bourassa said. "We could have filled out separate forms. We felt that would have been an affront to our dignity, so we went back home."
David Thompson, a spokesman for Marriage Equality New York, wasn't surprised by the incident. "Unfortunately, what Kevin and Joe experienced is typical of what American couples go through all the time," he said. "The law and the policy of the country is that gay couples are legal strangers to one another. We aren't even allowed to stand together going through immigration.
"Couples who marry in Canada, and then demand recognition of their marriage in the United States, help the marriage fight here by focusing attention on the fundamental injustice of current U.S law," he added.
Bourassa, an advocate for same-sex marriages, and Varnell, a banking manager, were married in 2001.
Same-sex marriage is legal in the provinces of British Columbia and Ontario. The Canadian national government has drafted legislation that redefines marriage as a union between two persons, but it won't be introduced to Parliament until the Supreme Court of Canada finishes reviewing the proposed legislation's constitutionality.
The customs incident comes on the heels the Canadian Parliament's narrow defeat earlier this week of a motion defining marriage as a union between a man and a woman.
Doug Elliot, the couple's lawyer, said he spoke to Canada's foreign minister about the incident.
Elliot also indicated that he was investigating whether any legal action on behalf of his clients is warranted.
"We can't force the United States to change its laws on same-sex marriage," the lawyer said. "But we can insist that Canadians be treated with respect and that Canadian law regarding family recognition be respected."
Evan Wolfson, executive director of Freedom to Marry, said that, as wrong as the incident was, "many Canadian and American couples have traveled between the two countries without incident. The solution, of course, is to end discrimination on both sides of the border."
