LGBTQ+ Migrants Fleeing Abuse Find More in US Care: Report

LGBTQ+ migrants fleeing persecution report being subjected to physical and verbal violence while in US custody. Some of them self-harmed, had hives or panic attacks.

A new report by a coalition of immigration and human rights organizations focuses on the group of LGBTQ+ and HIV-positive migrants. It described abuses committed by Customs and Border Protection and ICE employees, as well as by fellow inmates.

Of the 41 people surveyed, a third reported sexual abuse, physical assault or harassment while in detention. Many said they were trying to escape such attacks in their home countries.

“I want this report to help people understand the hidden reality of immigration detention centers,” Ariel Urrutia, a gay man living with HIV who was held in four different detention centers over the course of a year, said in a press release.

“To the outside world they are portrayed as humanitarians, but to me they were like a lion’s den. I still have nightmares about what I went through there.”

The report, co-authored by the National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC), Immigration Equality and Human Rights First, found that once across the border, respondents found themselves in situations that worsened their previous traumas.

One example of such harassment occurred in April, when a transgender woman reported that she was living with men, one of whom frequently masturbated in front of her. Complaints were collected from other people before any action was taken.

Other reports included suicide attempts and self-harm resulting from a failure by immigration officials to respond to abuses.

Killian, a transgender man, said his first attempt to take his own life came after suffering at the hands of prison staff. He was then placed in solitary confinement for 10 days.

“(T)hey, my clothes were taken away, even my underwear,” he stated in the report. “They put on me a T-shirt they put on crazy people. The worst abuse is having my clothes taken away without my consent.”

Kilian reported that he attempted suicide again, but detention center staff did not take him to a mental health professional.

“They wouldn’t care if I killed myself,” he added.

Transgender woman Zoe described how ICE officers told her the only way to protect her from harm was to spend more than 22 hours a day in isolation.

“When you complain, you end up in a prison cell,” another transgender woman told the organizations.

About half of those surveyed for the report said they spent time in solitary confinement, while most HIV-positive people said they had difficulty accessing medical care while in custody.

“LGBTQ+ people often come to the United States to escape serious violence and danger. Instead of providing them with shelter and safety, the United States subjects them to conditions in immigration detention centers that exacerbate their past traumas, neglect their medical needs, and expose them to discrimination and violence,” NIJC Policy Director Nayna Gupta said in a press release.

“Thanks to the brave group of immigrants who shared their experiences for this report, we better understand the rampant and systemic nature of these human rights violations.”

Newsweek reached out to CBP and ICE for comment on the report Friday morning.

CBP’s website sets out a series of policies that demonstrate that the agency takes its role in protecting civil rights and liberties seriously and that it has procedures for investigating complaints.

ICE also outlined similar goals on its website, emphasizing that its goal is to provide a “safe and secure environment for foreign nationals in ICE custody.”

The report’s authors say CBP and ICE are “unable” to safely detain LGBTQ+ and HIV-positive people and want to phase out immigration detention altogether.

Other recommendations include stricter guidelines for immigration staff to protect people like those interviewed, terminating contracts with prison companies that violate their human rights and adopting legislation that would close all migrant detention centres.

“No human being should have to endure such mistreatment and neglect, and for people already marginalized because of their LGBTQ+ identity or HIV-positive status, these conditions have proven to be particularly dangerous,” Christina Asencio, director of research, analysis and refugee protection at Human “Rights first,” the press release stated.

“Our report underscores the need to take immediate action to ensure the safety and dignity of every person who seeks safety in the United States.”

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