Gay Attleboro man can't get passport under married name
BY JIM HAND/SUN CHRONICLE STAFF
Friday, March 21, 2008 1:39 AM EDT
ATTLEBORO - As an AIDS counselor, Jason Hair-Wynn wants to bring his expertise to Africa, a continent that has been ravaged by the disease.
But when the Attleboro resident recently applied for a new passport so he could go to Africa, he learned the U.S. State Department would not recognize his new hyphenated name because he is a gay man married to another man.
He said the State Department said it was prohibited from recognizing his new name by the Defense of Marriage Act.
"We are unable to comply with your request for a name change based on the documentation you sent because of the Defense of Marriage Act ...," the letter states.
"In determining the meaning of any Act of Congress, or of any ruling, regulation, or interpretation of the various administration bureaus and agencies of the United States, the word 'marriage' means only a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife, and the word 'spouse' refers only to a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or a wife."
A spokeswoman for the department said she cannot discuss individual cases because of privacy rights.
Hair-Wynn said when he first received the envelope from the State Department he was excited. But when he opened it and read the letter, he was shocked.
"When I got the letter, I said, 'I can't even process this. This is legal discrimination. It is weird to get discrimination in writing,' " he said.
The former Jason Hair of Attleboro got married in Sudbury in 2005 and changed his name to Hair-Wynn. The state of Massachusetts is the only state that allows gay marriages.
The Registry of Motor Vehicles had no problem changing the name on his driver's license and the Social Security Administration changed his name on his Social Security card. But, the State Department was another matter.
The Defense of Marriage Acts stipulates that only marriages between men and women are recognized by the federal government.
"It's sad. It's really sad. You think we've come so far," he said.
Hair-Wynn said he wants to go to Africa as part of a volunteer effort to educate children about AIDS and the HIV virus.
"All I want to do is help people," he said.
He said he is scheduled to go to Ghana in late July and stay through August. He is supposed to live in a village and work at orphanages.
The group he is affiliated with is also trying to raise $25,000 for travel expenses and educational kits for the children through its Web site at wespreadthetruth.org. They are also looking for donations of crayons and coloring books.
The only alternative Hair-Wynn has is to change his name back to Jason Hair, a sacrifice he said he is willing to make to help the children of Ghana.
"It's definitely a hurdle, but it is something I'm willing to get over," he said.
Friday, March 21, 2008 1:39 AM EDT
ATTLEBORO - As an AIDS counselor, Jason Hair-Wynn wants to bring his expertise to Africa, a continent that has been ravaged by the disease.
But when the Attleboro resident recently applied for a new passport so he could go to Africa, he learned the U.S. State Department would not recognize his new hyphenated name because he is a gay man married to another man.
He said the State Department said it was prohibited from recognizing his new name by the Defense of Marriage Act.
"We are unable to comply with your request for a name change based on the documentation you sent because of the Defense of Marriage Act ...," the letter states.
"In determining the meaning of any Act of Congress, or of any ruling, regulation, or interpretation of the various administration bureaus and agencies of the United States, the word 'marriage' means only a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife, and the word 'spouse' refers only to a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or a wife."
A spokeswoman for the department said she cannot discuss individual cases because of privacy rights.
Hair-Wynn said when he first received the envelope from the State Department he was excited. But when he opened it and read the letter, he was shocked.
"When I got the letter, I said, 'I can't even process this. This is legal discrimination. It is weird to get discrimination in writing,' " he said.
The former Jason Hair of Attleboro got married in Sudbury in 2005 and changed his name to Hair-Wynn. The state of Massachusetts is the only state that allows gay marriages.
The Registry of Motor Vehicles had no problem changing the name on his driver's license and the Social Security Administration changed his name on his Social Security card. But, the State Department was another matter.
The Defense of Marriage Acts stipulates that only marriages between men and women are recognized by the federal government.
"It's sad. It's really sad. You think we've come so far," he said.
Hair-Wynn said he wants to go to Africa as part of a volunteer effort to educate children about AIDS and the HIV virus.
"All I want to do is help people," he said.
He said he is scheduled to go to Ghana in late July and stay through August. He is supposed to live in a village and work at orphanages.
The group he is affiliated with is also trying to raise $25,000 for travel expenses and educational kits for the children through its Web site at wespreadthetruth.org. They are also looking for donations of crayons and coloring books.
The only alternative Hair-Wynn has is to change his name back to Jason Hair, a sacrifice he said he is willing to make to help the children of Ghana.
"It's definitely a hurdle, but it is something I'm willing to get over," he said.
posted by peaceofmind | 4:33 AM
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