Watch Choosing Absalon

What if you had to choose between your spouse and your country? Absalon came to Florida on a work visa from Canada and soon fell in love with Eric, a U.S. citizen. The two were legally married in Canada in 2006, and they made their home in Orlando. Three years later, when Absalon's work visa was due to expire, Eric was faced with a choice that no legally married person in America should ever face: whether to leave his country to stay with his spouse, or to leave his spouse to remain in his country.

U.S. immigration law permits a heterosexual citizen to sponsor a foreign spouse for permanent residency. No such immigration right is extended to same-sex, binational couples in America. Over 40,000 of these couples must choose love or country because the U.S. government does not recognize their relationships - even if individual states or foreign nations do.

In America, discrimination against gay and lesbian people is accepted and embedded in law. Same-sex, binational couples and their families are torn apart every year because of nothing more than nationalized bigotry.

Choosing Absalon is the story of love triumphing over shameful homophobia in the United States of America.

Executive Producers: Mary Meeks & Vicki Nantz
Director: Vicki Nantz

NTSC / English / 27 minutes

Choosing Absalon is a 2009 documentary with a runtime of 26 minutes.