Cases & Advocacy
Tag
LGBT Asylum
Cases & Advocacy
In re R.T.
R.T. is a gay man from Peru who fled to the United States because he was the victim of severe harassment and violence in his home country. While in Lima, Peru, he was physically assaulted several times in public, and was subjected to sexual abuse as well. The persecution started when he was young, with verbal and emotional abuse that eventually led to physical abuse. As he grew older, the abuse and harassment only worsened. After being stripped naked at his workplace by co-workers who...Cases & Advocacy
In re V.R.
V.R., a gay man from Mexico, had been taunted, harassed, and assaulted for most of his life. His stepfather was particularly abusive and attempted to “make a man” out of V.R. and “correct” his sexual orientation. V.R. was also subject to constant verbal and physical harassment at school, which only worsened as he got older. He suffered physical, sexual, and emotional abuse at the hands of classmates, family members, and people in his neighborhood. He eventually left his...Cases & Advocacy
In re R.F.
R.F. is a young gay man from Honduras who is seeking asylum in the United States. Growing up, R.F. was physically and emotionally abused by his grandmother and uncles because he didn’t conform to gender stereotypes. At school he was also targeted by older children, and when he would try to seek help from his teachers or the principal, he was told that he needed to behave more like a “man” so that the other kids would stop harassing him. By the time he was 13- years-old, his...Press Release
Civil Rights Groups Urge Ninth Circuit to Reconsider Denial of Asylum to Gay Man from Guatemala
(San Francisco, CA, April 24, 2009)—Today, Immigration Equality and the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) filed a friend of the court brief urging the Ninth Circuit to rehear its decision in Martinez v. Holder, 557 F.3d 1059 (9th Cir. 2009). Last month, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals denied asylum to Saul Martinez, a gay man from Guatemala. Martinez fled Guatemala after he was beaten, sexually assaulted, and threatened by a Guatemalan Congressman and repeatedly harassed by the...Cases & Advocacy
In re A.C.
A.C. is a prominent lesbian activist for LGBTQ rights and women’s rights in Honduras. A paramilitary gang of masked, armed men attacked A.C. in her home in Honduras and sexually assaulted her while making derogatory comments about her sexual orientation. A.C. did not report the sexual assault to the police, fearing that the police would subject her to further harassment or violence. After the attack, A.C. received a series of threatening phone calls that also used derogatory terms to...Cases & Advocacy
In re Marta
Marta is a transgender woman from Mexico who suffered unthinkable verbal, physical, and sexual abuse because of her sexual orientation and gender identity. The abuse began in her youth when she was abducted by a group of armed men. When her brother came to rescue her, he was shot to death in front of her. When the police arrived, Marta was arrested for refusing to give them the names of the men who had abducted her. She was put in jail for several days where she was raped by the police. After...Cases & Advocacy
In re Barbara
Born male in El Salvador, Barbara was abused throughout her childhood by family, neighbors, and classmates because she was “too feminine.” When Barbara turned 18, she began to live as a woman, but she still suffered frequent harassment and violence. In one instance, Barbara and her boyfriend were viciously beaten outside of a club. Barbara was kidnapped and taken to an isolated area where she was physically and sexually assaulted. After the kidnapping and assault, Barbara lived in...Cases & Advocacy
In re M.Q.
M.Q. is a native and citizen of Mexico. When M.Q. was a child, his father often accused him of being a “sissy,” and as he grew up, M.Q. was physically assaulted many times by his family, peers, and police because he was gay. One gang of teenage boys who had beaten M.Q. threatened him and told him that if they ever saw him again, they would kill him. In December 2003, M.Q. encountered them again and barely escaped alive. M.Q. fled Mexico, and arrived in the U.S. in January 2004....Cases & Advocacy