Protection for Gay Couples Left Out of Immigration Bill

Activists unhappy

Gay rights advocates are reacting angrily to a decision by Senate Democrats on Tuesday to drop protections for same-sex couples from a landmark immigration reform bill in order to preserve Republican support for the legislation.

"Today it became clear that our so-called 'friends' don't have the courage or the spine to stand up for what's right," Felipe Sousa-Rodriguez, co-director of the social-justice organization GetEQUAL, said.

Sousa-Rodriguez said Democratic lawmakers "are content to buy into the false choice that Republicans created — holding a sorely-needed immigration bill hostage in order to cement inequality into law."