LGBT, Youth, and Latino Leaders in Florida Call on Senator Rubio to End Radical, Exclusionary Rhetoric
TAMPA – During the Hillsborough County Republican Party’s 2013 Lincoln Day Dinner, a group of Latino, youth, and LGBT Floridians interrupted Senator Marco Rubio’s speech, demanding that he put an end to recent comments that the inclusion of LGBT families in an immigration bill would cause him to withdraw his support for the bill.
Those interrupting the speech yelled, “Include our families in immigration reform! All families matter!”
Recently, Senator Rubio has aligned himself with the most extreme right-wing segment of the Republican Party in standing up against inclusion of same-sex binational couples in a comprehensive immigration bill. After having run for the Senate in 2010 on an anti-immigrant, anti-LGBT platform, Senator Rubio — now eyeing a run for the White House — is part of the “Gang of 8” working on an immigration bill in the Senate. Rubio shifted his focus to an immigration reform bill after seeing the exit polls in November 2012, in an attempt to look more pro-immigrant.
Rubio is now aligning himself with the anti-LGBT wing of the Republican Party in his attempts to keep same-sex binational couples out of the immigration reform bill. Two amendments have been filed in the Senate Judiciary Committee to include provisions for same-sex binational couples, yet Rubio has made assertions that he would pull his support from the entire bill if these amendments are passed.
“Every day, thousands of same-sex binational families go to sleep without knowing whether they can stay together even one more day,” said Felipe Sousa-Rodiguez, co-director of GetEQUAL. “We demand that Senator Rubio use his political power to represent families like mine and to move our country forward, rather than moving in reverse.”
Even the Republican Party’s recent “post-mortem” of the 2012 election cycle indicates that the party is interested in shifting away from this kind of divisive rhetoric. The strategy document states: “On messaging, we must change our tone — especially on certain social issues that are turning off young voters. In every session with young voters, social issues were at the forefront of the discussion; many see them as the civil rights issues of our time. We must be a party that is welcoming and inclusive for all voters” (http://growthopp.gop.com/default.aspx, page 22).
In recent polls, 64% of Latino voters support including same-sex binational couples in immigration reform, and 70% of Latino Catholics support these provisions (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/08/latino-voters-poll_n_2836354.html). Rubio’s recent rhetoric about pulling his support for a comprehensive immigration reform if same-sex couples are included is in direct opposition to Latino voters’ preferences.
“I am a Latina voter, and I want same-sex couples included in immigration reform,” said local organizer Marisol Marquez. “We all know that 64% of Latino voters believe in protecting same-sex couples in immigration reform. Will Senator Rubio do the right thing? I’m not sure — but I know we will remember his decision in 2016 when we head to the ballot box.”
