Issues

Advocating for governments to create more pathways to safety for LGBTQI+ refugees has always been an essential part of our work. Governments have the power to help LGBTQI+ people seeking safety, and therefore, Rainbow Railroad consistently calls on governments to take action. Because of the Biden-Harris administration’s commitment to LGBTQI+ rights at home and abroad, and the United States’ capacity to resettle LGBTQI+ refugees domestically, Rainbow Railroad has been pressing the U.S. government since 2020 to make changes to laws and policies that would allow for more LGBTQI+ people to resettle in the United States. A key recommendation we have made since this administration has come into office has been to allow Rainbow Railroad and other LGBTQI+ civil society organizations the ability to directly refer vulnerable LGBTQI+ refugees to the U.S. government for resettlement.Why Direct Referral is ImportantLGBTQI+ people who have fled their home country and are living in what we refer to as a “transit country” must be referred to the government of a safer country in order to be resettled as a refugee. An embassy, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) or a designated non-governmental organization can make this referral. A referral is what gives an LGBTQI+ person the chance of being resettled in a safer country. But, LGBTQI+ people face systemic barriers to attaining this referral. Limitations in access to refugee status determination services, violence and harassment in refugee camp settings and a lack of trauma-informed approaches to working with survivors prevent LGBTQI+ people from accessing traditional refugee assistance in transit countries. This is where Rainbow Railroad can play an essential role in identifying LGBTQI+ people in critical need of resettlement. Many of our staff are members of the LGBTQI+ community, and because we are embedded in an extensive network of civil society defenders across the globe, we have a unique ability to locate, verify, and triage LGBTQI+ people in need of resettlement. Rainbow Railroad is the leading international non-profit organization in safe relocation of LGBTQI+ persons globally. Last year alone, we supported more than 4,500 people through emergency travel and other programming. Referral Status Has the Potential to Create a “Highway to Safety”Designating Rainbow Railroad and other LGBTQI+ civil society organizations as referral partners has the potential to vastly increase the number of people Rainbow Railroad can resettle in the United States. Such a partnership would leverage Rainbow Railroad’s expertise at identifying, verifying, and triaging the most extreme cases of persecution while streamlining the process for refugee status determination for those in need. The U.S. government has recently announced a new program called Welcome Corps, which allows for U.S. citizens to sponsor refugees who relocate to the United States. Rainbow Railroad was proud to be a consultative partner in the development of this new program. Sponsors - ordinary American citizens - commit to providing emotional, financial, and integration support for a designated period of time in order to help a newcomer adjust to life in the United States. This program has the potential to resettle thousands of LGBTQI+ refugees in the United States, and making Rainbow Railroad an official referral partner will only help more LGBTQI+ people at-risk.As Welcome Corps is built, we are calling on the Biden-Harris administration to officially designate Rainbow Railroad a referral partner of the program. This partnership would have the potential to create a highway to safety for LGBTQI+ people in the United States; bringing together the on-the-ground expertise of Rainbow Railroad, the vast legal power of the U.S. government, and the generosity of ordinary American citizens.What comes next and how can I help?In the coming months, we’ll continue to advocate to the U.S. government to make Rainbow Railroad a full referral partner for the Welcome Corps program, in addition to making Rainbow Railroad a referral  partner for the traditional refugee stream (something we’ve been calling for since 2021).You can learn more about why we’re calling for the ability to directly refer refugees to the U.S. government as well as a full accounting of our specific policy asks in this memo to U.S. policy makers.  At the same time, we are building a database of U.S. citizens who are interested in becoming sponsors of LGBTQI+ refugees through the Welcome Corps program. You can learn more and register your interest in becoming a sponsor here. 

This report outlines the verification process for Human Rights Defender (HRD) cases by Rainbow Railroad intake caseworkers. This document describes how Rainbow Railroad’s vetting process aligns with the HRD stream’s definitions and criteria for referral. Requests for help received by Rainbow Railroad undergo thorough verification through civil document review, risk assessment and screening interviews to confirm identity and credibility. Cases move from an initial receipt of request for help or direct referral, to an email screening and evidence collection stage, to the interview and case summary stage with our Intake Casework Team. From this point applications that have been flagged as potential HRDs by the Intake Team, assigned to caseworkers. Caseworkers perform an indepth credibility assessment including conducting another interview, this one is specifically for HRDs, checking the case individual’s references, and working with the individual to complete their application. The application is then submitted for review to the Program Manager responsible for the HRD Stream and then final review goes through the Head of Programs before the case is submitted for consideration.You can read more about the HRD verification process here and below.

The Canadian government has established a dedicated refugee stream for human rights defenders (HRDs) for resettlement to Canada, and is exploring the possibility of opening this stream to credible non-governmental organizations such as Rainbow Railroad to make specialized direct referrals of their internal cases. Rainbow Railroad is grateful for the opportunity to be considered under this emerging pathway and to be engaged in an ongoing conversation around our direct referral capacity.You can read the full report here, or access it below.

In addressing global LGBTQI+ persecution and forced displacement, Rainbow Railroad relies on a large network of partners who support our mission, rather than on branded field offices which would pose a risk to our staff and the people we serve, given that same-sex intimacy is criminalized in nearly 70 countries. Instead, we work directly with local human rights defenders, activist networks, and organizations who help us to identify, verify, and triage requests for help from LGBTQI+ persons facing persecution and provide on-the-ground insights, verification, identification information, and logistical support. Our trusted relationships with underground collectives, unregistered groups, and LGBTQI+ rights defenders give Rainbow Railroad unique access to global networks of vulnerable individuals facing persecution based on their sexual orientation, gender identity, and sex characteristics (SOGIESC). This model has led to the successful relocation of thousands of individuals and has strengthened the global LGTBQI+ movement more broadly.Since 2019, Rainbow Railroad has partnered with over 50 organizations engaged in work with the LGBTQI+ community. While these partners are headquartered in 24 countries, many of the organizations work regionally and their reach extends into neighboring countries.The countries represented in Rainbow Railroad’s partnerships include Argentina, Costa Rica, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Guyana, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Liberia, Lithuania, Malawi, Mexico, Namibia, Nigeria, Pakistan, South Africa, South Sudan, Tunisia, Russia, Rwanda, Turkey, Uganda, and Ukraine.You can read the full report here, or access it below.

Two years after a landmark decision from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) urging the Jamaican government to repeal the country’s homophobic laws, Rainbow Railroad and the Human Dignity Trust call on Jamaica to immediately comply with the top Americas human rights tribunal’s recommendations.Despite two years having passed since the IACHR’s decision was made public, Jamaica has resolutely failed to comply with a single recommendation made by the Commission. In particular, homophobic laws remain in force and there is no protection from discrimination for the LGBTQI+ community.In the face of this lack of progress, the organizations released a joint report, A Caribbean Outlier: Repeal anti-LGBTQI+ laws in Jamaica, documenting the violence, harassment and discrimination faced by LGBTQI+ people in Jamaica over the last two years.According to the new report, in 2021, Rainbow Railroad received 322 requests for assistance from individuals in Jamaica, up from 280 the previous year. When seeking help, 221 LGBTQI+ people reported being beaten up, shot at or “chopped”. 101 people reported family-based violence, and there were a further 185 reports referring to public humiliation, sexual violence and police brutality.You can read the full report here, or access it below. 

The IssueJamaica has always been at the core of our work. The country continues to be one of the most dangerous places in the world to be LGBTQI+. In 2006, Time magazine dubbed Jamaica “the most homophobic place on earth.”  Approximately 40 percent of our requests for help originate from the Caribbean region. Over the past two years, we have relocated nearly 300 gay, lesbian, bisexual, non-binary and transgender Jamaicans experiencing extreme persecution. Reports from those experiencing persecution in Jamaica are staggering. Rainbow Railroad caseworkers frequently help individuals who have been brutally attacked, sexually harassed, assaulted, burned with acid or fire, have received death threats or had gang violence occur in their neighbourhoods. These acts of cruelty are usually made known to the police and state, and rarely is protection offered to or justice achieved by the victims. Unfortunately, this situation is not limited to Jamaica; nine countries in the Caribbean still criminalize same-sex intimacy.In these regions, sodomy, or “buggery,” laws criminalize same-sex intimacy, and the police are known to actively target members of the LGBTQI+ community. Jamaica’s history of colonial violence and religious-excused homophobia and transphobia have made community-level hatred rampant. The country’s transgender community is particularly vulnerable to sexual and physical violence, as well as precarious living conditions. Many LGBTQI+ individuals in Jamaica are experiencing homelessness or displacement, with many living in gullies (storm drains) underneath the city. Our ResponseRainbow Railroad has a robust network of partners and activists on the ground in Jamaica. These essential partnerships assist us in identifying vulnerable persons, verifying their files, finding evidence for their claim and supporting the creation of a plan for their escape. Without these critical partnerships, we would not be able to assist the same volume of persons each year.We believe that a route for emergency evacuation is essential. We also recognize the importance of advocating for systemic change and contributing to the movement for freedom of LGBTQI+ people in the Caribbean. That’s why we also partner, where possible, with community based organizations to elevate the work of local activists and advance the state of human rights in the region. Rainbow Railroad advocates for the decriminalization of anti-homophobia and anti-sodomy laws, and we stand in solidarity with the movement for legal reform. In 2018 we had the chance to interview a few LGBTQI+ individuals that we helped find safety.It was a really exciting experience, as we don’t always get a chance to meet the individuals that we help. We took this as an opportunity to better understand the challenges people face when they are seeking asylum. Hearing their stories about resettling helps us build better support networks and resources so that we can improve our services.More Information JFLAG is an organization that advocates for the rights, livelihood and well-being of LGBTQI+ people in Jamaica.​The Eastern Caribbean Alliance for Diversity and Equality is an LGBTQI+ advocacy organization in the Eastern Caribbean. “In Jamaica, some LGBTQI people are forced to live in the sewers,” CBS’ 60 Minutes, 2019“LGBTQI people living in fear in Jamaica,” CBS’ 60 Minutes, 2019“Executive Director Kimahli Powell: Jamaica Brief, August 14,” Rainbow Railroad, 2018“Belize government’s limited appeal of decriminalisation ruling proceeds while LGBT community stands firm in their rights,” Human Dignity Trust, 2018“Not Safe at Home: Violence and Discrimination against LGBT People in Jamaica,” Human Rights Watch, 2017 “Activist Maurice Tomlinson on challenging Jamaica's anti-gay laws,” CBC Radio, 2016“Jamaica: Petition before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights,” Human Dignity Trust, 2019