March 18 2003

KESHAV JIWNANI IS like a lot of San Franciscans: He came to this city because he didn't fit in where he was born. He came to escape oppression and hostility, to build a new life in a place where diversity is a value. As Camille T. Taiara reports on page 16, he's become a part of the community, a leader in the trance music world, and a DJ with a sizable following who plays at clubs all over town.

Like many immigrants, he also lacks the paperwork to stay in this country legally. A few years ago, that wouldn't have made much difference: chances are nobody would have noticed him, and he would have been able to live in this country and this city for years.

But Jiwnani is unlucky: He comes from a country that's on the Bush administration's list of places that might harbor terrorists – and so, in post-9/11, wartime America, he was forced to register with the Immigration and Naturalization Service. Now he's facing deportation to his native Pakistan, a country he left when he was 17, after suffering brutal assaults and humiliation because of his sexual orientation. In Pakistan, openly gay people can be stoned to death.

Jiwnani's case has attracted some local political attention: Sup. Tom Ammiano and Assemblymember Mark Leno have, to their credit, made statements of support. San Franciscans across the political and cultural spectrum ought to write to the INS and rally behind his cause.