BIG ISSUE
Shelter for all
The government’s anti-refugee bill will put LGBTQI+ lives at risk, writes Rainbow Migration executive director Leila Zadeh
Leila Zadeh
ALEX JACKMAN/UNSPLASH, MIKI FATH,UNSPLASH
In July, the Nationality and Borders Bill started its journey through Parliament. For months now, the government has been ramping up its rhetoric around this bill, but all the tough talk is merely a smokescreen to distract us from the fact that, in reality, this is an anti-refugee bill. It will make sweeping changes to the asylum system and will mean that many LGBTQI+ refugees will no longer get protection in the UK.
It’s already difficult for LGBTQI+ people who are fleeing persecution to find safety in the UK, and these cruel proposals will make it even harder. In order to secure asylum or refugee protection, people have to ‘prove’ their sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression or sex characteristics (SOGIESC). Many are not even aware that they can be given protection on account of being LGBTQI+, so they often apply long after arriving in the country.