Independence Day is the biggest holiday in America. It celebrates the freedom the people are given to live their lives however they want. All media across the country emphasize on the fact how free America is, and that you can live your life in America the way you want and to be whoever you want to be.

For instance, the head title in the Honolulu Advertiser (Hawaii’s main newspaper) on 4th of July was “On being American” and under it, there were quotes of several people telling us what it means for them to be an American. Here is a quick sample of what they said:

“I have lived abroad in different countries for various lengths of time, and I can comfortably say that there is a way of life and freedom here in the States to be whoever we want to be.”

Or see this one is even better:

“Being American means that I have the freedom to pursue my dreams and to live my life however I choose.”

Oh really? Then if I have the freedom to live however I want and to be whoever I want, then why can’t I marry my female life partner? Where is the freedom, I ask? Well, I can tell you where – the freedom is in many other civilized countries, but in the USA! All the U.S. media are trying to do is to brainwash people’s minds that they are free and that they can do whatever they want, while the truth is exactly the opposite. Well, one thing we have to admit is that the U.S. media really know marketing well.

If you are gay in the U.S., not only are you not free, but you are hated by many citizens for being gay. Even worse, if you fall in love with a same-sex partner who is from a foreign country, you’re completely out of luck because you won’t be able to sponsor your partner for permanent residency in the U.S. Even though gays can marry in the state of California and Massachusetts, these marriages mean nothing on the federal level. They are not recognized by the federal government; therefore, the foreign partner can’t be sponsored for a green card. So if the temporary visa of the partner expires, no matter if student visa, visitor visa or work visa, the couple has a tough decision to take. Either break up or leave the United States together.

I recently read about a lesbian couple in Los Angeles, Rita and Margot. Rita is a U.S. Citizen and Margot a German native who came to the U.S. to study. They fell in love four years ago, but now Margot’s student visa is expiring this month. Even though Rita has a very successful business in L.A. and they both have a 7-month old child together, they have to leave the U.S. in order to keep their small family of three together. Rita and Emma, the baby girl – both American citizens – will be refugees of the United States of America as of July 23, 2008. They will move to Germany, a country where gay and lesbian couples can legally marry and where their marriages are recognized for immigration purposes, like they are in many other European countries and Canada. Rita said she paid 1.4 million in taxes last year (she has an entertainment marketing business in L.A.). She pays a lot of taxes, but the laws of the U.S. force her to move into exile just because she loves a woman with whom she wants to spend her life with. What freedom is that? Is she allowed to be the woman who she is? Of course not. She can’t, and unfortunately she is not the only one. It is estimated that there are about 40,000 binational same-sex couples in the United States who are struggling with a similar fate.

Bottom line is, what Independence Day and freedom is that? The only way to be free in the United States is if you play by the rules… and to be easily brainwashed, be quiet, and just be what they want you to be. All that reminds me of the story:

Jesus told Adam:
You are now a free man, Adam. You are so free that you have the choice of choosing your wife.

Well, Happy Independence Day…