Meet the Lesbian Couple to Receive the 3rd Green Card Issued to an LGBT Couple Since DOMA's Defeat

Karin Bogliolo, a citizen of the United Kingdom, was issued a green card yesterday by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services based on her marriage to U.S. citizen Judy Rickard, making them the third lesbian or gay couple to receive a green card after the Supreme Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act. 

Rickard and Bogliolo joined The DOMA Project, a driving force behind the movement to keep binational couples together, and filed a green card petition in January 2012 based on their April 2011 marriage in Vermont. They first met online nearly a decade ago and became domestic partners on Valentine’s Day 2007, according to The DOMA Project.

“The issuance of this green card to Karin Bogliolo is the culmination of a two-decade grassroots movement in which lesbian and gay Americans fought for the right to sponsor the person that they love for permanent resident status in the United States,” Lavi Soloway, attorney and co-founder of The DOMA Project, said in a statement.

Last fall, the couple attended a green card interview with the citizenship and immigration office, where they were given a full interview. The case was put on hold at Soloway’s request, and the San Jose Field Office held the file for ten months, defying federal guidelines that stipulated a denial for all same-sex couples under DOMA.

In addition to remaining active in the fight for inclusive and comprehensive immigration reform, Rickard is also the author of Torn Apart: United by Love, Divided by Law, a collection of stories focusing on same-sex couples not allowed a green card.

Speaking from their San Jose, Calif. home, Bogliolo said, “At last, after so many years of struggle, huge expense, fear, and separation I can at last believe I am home. I have a home.” 

Learn more about Judy and Karin's road to a Green Card in the video below. 

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