| Love Exiles EventsLove Exiles board members are attending the Democratic National Committee meeting in Washington DC on February 2. It is time the United States honors the human rights of US citizens instead of sending them into exile. It's time for ALL US citizens, GLBT as well as straight, to have the freedom to live in the United States lawfully with their foreign partners. Special for US binational same-sex couples: send your story to the Democratic National Committee in Washington! Past EventsCelebrate the new year and the new United States Congress, January 28. The potluck was a big success with lots of new exiles attending and sharing their stories. More dinners and a summer social are planned. Potluck website: http://loveexilespotluck.blogspot.com/ Cross-country effort focuses on immigration law. Meeting organized by Democrats Abroad France Women's Caucus and GLBT Caucus. More on Democrats Abroad France website. Meet and Greet with US Consul General Marjorie Ames in Amsterdam. The Consul General shared her knowledge of issues related to living abroad and family reunification. The Consulate's has a mission to support Americans with their needs and is ready to be called upon. She also encouraged same-sex couples to travel together through US immigration, rather than separately through the citizens and non-citizens line. Other issues addressed: adoption of children of GLBT Americans living abroad, visas for traveling to the US when HIV positive. Five years of same-sex marriage in the Netherlands (and in the world). An event co-organized by Love Exiles and IHLIA, the gay and lesbian archive of the Netherlands, at Amsterdan City Hall on 1 April 2006. Exposition displays Bi-national Wedding Photos. A photo exposition on same-sex marriage, featuring wedding photos of three love exiles couples, opens on Wednesday December 7. The photos will be on display through February 1 at 20 locations including public libraries, community centers, schools and nursing homes. Celebrations featured include the weddings of Kirsten and Jacqueline (2001), Martha and Lin (2001), and James and his late husband Janherman, who married in 2003. The opening is December 7 at 5:00 pm at Stadsdeelkantoor Oost/Watergraafsmeer, Linneausstraat 89. Organized by IHLIA (International Homo/Lesbisch Informatiecentrum and Archief), COC Amsterdam, and MV/S-media in collaboration with the Oost/Watergraafsmeer local council. A map with the locations of the photos is available at the Stadsdeelkantoor. Celebrate the New Year with Love Exiles. 1 January 2006 from 2:00 - 5:00 pm. Love Exiles Netherlandsafternoon drinks to celebrate the new year. Thanksgiving in Amsterdam at The Tube. TheTube.nl organized Thanksgiving dinner for bi-national couples on November 24, 2005, in Amsterdam. Amsterdam Canal Pride 2005 - Love Exiles were out on the Prinsengracht for Canal Parade 2005. Our slogan: Dutchify the World, Globalize Gay Rights! Our signs were photographed by many. Independence Day - Love Exiles was out in the sun with the American community for Independence Day on 3 July 2005. We made new friends with love exiles from Rotterdam and The Hague. Our community continues to grow. ACTmarkt - Love Exiles founder Martha McDevitt-Pugh spoke about why same-sex couples and their families need fully equality, and showed slides from the Marriage Equality Express. Thanksgiving at the ABC Treehouse - The American Book Center's ABC Treehouse generously invited Love Exiles to break bread together with the community at its annual Thanksgiving dinner and to speak about the Love Exiles trip on the Marriage Caravan Express. Lesbian Festival - Love Exiles participated in the political debate at the Lesbian Festival. Love Exiles chair Martha McDevitt-Pugh was a featured speaker on the panel. Meet and Greet with US Consul General- United States General Consul Michele Bond spoke to Love Exiles members in Sept. 2004 on immigration possibilities (such as employment visas) for partners and family members of US citizens. She offered to answer inquiries from our community about visas. Ms. Bond can be contacted at the United States Consulate in Amsterdam. Marriage Caravan Express - Love Exiles hit the road in a big way, traveling from San Francisco to Washington DC with marriage-rights activities to call attention to the need for protections for same-sex couples and their families. With eleven stops in eight days and as many meetings with local communities and gay rights groups, the caravan culminated in a national rally in Washington DC on October 11 that was aired on C-SPAN television. Read Love Exiles Founder and Chair Martha McDevitt-Pugh's story from the road. Listen to David's Swatling's Radio Netherlands program. Amsterdam Pride Canal Parade Weekend - What a great day we had at our booth on the Westerkerk (photos), meeting up with lots of exiles and having great conversations about the rights of same-sex couples. Our new t-shirt "United by Love, Exiled by Law" was a popular item. Together with Democrats Abroad, we registered US citizens to vote in the November election. The Love Exiles Summer Dinner was great fun. We had a three-course meal and Tjing Tjing, a South African restaurant in Amsterdam. We were joined by several new love exiles and the evening flew by. Some people nearly missed their trains home! The official Love Exiles Foundation launch was a big success! Kees Waaldijk of Leiden University spoke on forms of recognition of same-sex relationships in different European countries. The event was well attended and very international, with many countries represented (Italy, Nicaragua, South Africa, the US, Netherlands, the UK, France, Indonesia). Filming of documentary "Limited Partnerships" in Cologne. Love Exiles from Brazil, the Netherlands, Australia, Germany, and the USA participated in filming of a segment on bi-national same-sex couples who left the United States to be together. Gay Pride in Madrid,
June 2003 Thanksgiving 2002 was a fabulous event attended by 75 members of our community and parliamentarian Boris Dittrich, now leader of the D66 party. © 2007 Stichting Love Exiles. All rights reserved. |
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