Couples Without A Country
Binational gay couples sue over the Defense Of Marriage Act, which blocks same-sex couples from federal benefits -- including the right to sponsor a foreign spouse for a green card. Miranda Leitsinger reports on MSNBC:

The lawsuit claims that DOMA violates their constitutional right to equal protection.

...DOMA, enacted by Congress in 1996, blocks federal recognition of same-sex marriage, thereby denying various benefits given to heterosexual couples, such as the right to immigrate. Thirty-nine states have defense of marriage acts, while six states and the District of Columbia allow same-sex marriage, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. There are an estimated 36,000 binational gay couples in the U.S.

One of the couples in the lawsuit is American Edwin Blesch, 71, and his husband Tim Smulian, a 65-year-old British-South African. The couple married in South Africa in August 2007, where gay marriage is legal. Their union is also recognized in New York state, which approved same-sex marriage last year.

For some gay couples, fight goes on to marry -- and stay in the US

"The last years have been probably the most exhilarating in our lives in that we're together and we both now have the ... soulmate that we've been searching for all of our lives," he said.

But the legal restrictions have made life more stressful for the couple, who live in Orient, NY. Smulian's visa has expired, and though federal authorities have given him an additional year to stay in the country in what is known as "deferred action," that time will be up Feb. 7, 2013.

"We're now in our retirement years ... there's not a whole lot of time for us to dawdle around waiting for things like this to be settled," added Blesch, who says he has HIV/AIDS and needs to stay in the country for his medical care.

The lawsuit notes that if the couples were heterosexual, the federal government would recognize the foreign spouse as an immediate relative of their American partner, who could apply for an immigrant visa for them.

I don't understand why DOMA doesn't violate the constitutional right to equal protection -- and it seems others agree with me. More here.