Speech #960187148

Mr. President. I am introducing legislation today to remove from the Immigration and Nationality Act language which requires the Immigration and Naturalization Service to exclude suspected homosexual aliens from entry into the United States. The specific provision of the statute. section 212(a)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. provides for the exclusion of "aliens afflicted with psychopathic personality. sexual deviation. or a mental defect." This provision of the law was enacted in 1952 as part of the McCarranWalter Immigration Act. As originally written the statute applied to "aliens afflicted with psychopathic personality. epilepsy. or a mental defect." In 1965 the words "sexual deviation" were substituted for "epilepsy." The purpose of the 1965 amendment was to establish that homosexuality was to be considered as a "disease or mental defect" requiring an examination of the person by the Public Health Service pending admission to the United States. The practical difficulty of enforcing the law is evident.