The Time is Always Now to Mobilize 

LGBTQI+ rights and refugee rights are under threat in the coming election, but this election is also an opportunity to renew our commitment to mobilizing in defence of our community, in the U.S. and around the world. Our freedom to organize, vote, challenge discriminatory legislation and advocate for progress are all on the ballot this election and cannot be taken for granted. 

Rainbow Railroad’s Communities of Care program has been an antidote to the rising hate against the LGBTQI+ community in the U.S. Queer and trans Americans and allies are continuing to rally in support of refugees who are searching for safety, home, and belonging. 

This is how our community is fighting back, and we must continue to raise our voices to ensure that all of the United States remains a safe place for LGBTQI+ refugees and asylum seekers to live with dignity, protected by federal and state law, and supported by an affirming community. This is only possible if the U.S. Administration continues to implement the Memorandum on Advancing the Human Rights of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Intersex Persons Around the World. Our future as a community hangs in the balance.

The Domestic Fight for LGBTQI+ Liberation 

In recent years, there has been a global attack on LGBTQI+ rights, and many parts of the United States are no exception to this trend. As an international organization that supports the resettlement of LGBTQI+ refugees and asylum seekers into the United States, Rainbow Railroad’s work is directly impacted by the domestic landscape for the rights of LGBTQI+ people. 

It is critical to recognize that, like many other countries around the world, there are significant regional and local inequalities in access to safety for LGBTQI+ persons across the United States. For LGBTQI+ communities worldwide, the United States represents both a preferred country of resettlement and a site of discrimination and criminalization. Our activism in the United States is multi-pronged; we continue to advocate for the resettlement of LGBTQI+ refugees to safer communities in the United States, while also pushing back against anti-LGBTQI+ sentiment. 

We are approaching a historic election in the United States, and it is vital to understand what is at stake for our community. As we continue to advocate for the resettlement of LGBTQI+ refugees and asylum seekers into the United States, and mobilize our community in support of newcomers, we must acknowledge that the fight for LGBTQI+ liberation is happening on every front. 

Mobilizing our Community in the United States

Since the beginning of 2023, Rainbow Railroad has been rallying our community across the United States to create Communities of Care in support of LGBTQI+ newcomers, through the US government’s Welcome Corps program. 

The program empowers everyday Americans to help LGBTQI+ refugees find home and belonging, providing critical support such as securing housing and employment, and accessing healthcare and other resources in their first 90 days in the U.S. – with training and ongoing support from Rainbow Railroad. 

Welcome Corps is the most significant, and LGBTQI+ inclusive, innovation to US refugee policy in decades, launched by the current administration in partnership with civil society groups like Rainbow Railroad. It represents a critical opportunity to deliver on the Memorandum on Advancing the Human Rights of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Intersex Persons Around the World, including increased protection for LGBTQI+ refugees. 

Since the program’s launch, Rainbow Railroad has mobilized more than 200 volunteers to form more than 40 Communities of Care. However, Welcome Corps, along with other pathways to resettle LGBTQI+ refugees and asylum seekers in the United States, may be at risk. The next few months represent a critical period for LGBTQI+ refugees and asylum seekers to access resettlement pathways into the United States, while they still exist. 

We are asking our community to step up by: donating in support of this program, volunteering to create Communities of Care, and alerting your representatives to the importance of the Welcome Corps Program. 

At the 2023 Global Refugee Forum, Rainbow Railroad pledged to resettle at least 50 LGBTQI+ refugees through Welcome Corps. With the program currently at risk, we need support from our community to make this a reality in 2024. 

Connecting Our Data to the Landscape for LGBTQI+ Rights in the United States 

In June 2023, for the first time in the organization’s history, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) announced a National State of Emergency for LGBTQI+ Americans, following an overwhelming wave of anti-LGBTQI+ legislation across the country. Kelley Robinson, HRC President, stated, “LGBTQ+ Americans are living in a state of emergency. The multiplying threats facing millions in our community are not just perceived — they are real, tangible and dangerous.” At the recent UN Summit of the Future, First Lady of the United States, Jill Biden, responded to the HRC’s declaration, promising that, “We won’t stand for violence against LGBTQI people in the US and around the world”.

Rainbow Railroad’s own data supports the conclusion that there are real and present threats for LGBTQI+ Americans, with a major spike in requests for help from the United States following that announcement, in July 2023. Many of these requests originated from states that passed multiple laws restricting LGBTQI+ rights, limiting gender-affirming care for trans individuals, and permitting legal discrimination against LGBTQI+ people. In 2023, many states including Texas, Florida, Missouri, Ohio, and South Carolina passed, or attempted to pass, legislation restricting the rights of LGBTQI+ people. 

Requests for help from the United States in 2024 also point to major issues at stake for our community in the upcoming election. A recent spike in requests for help in the summer of 2024 cited the need for aid and help relocating to a safer country, driven by heightened insecurity and anxiety over the implications of Project 2025, and the potential outcome of the 2024 Election.

Project 2025: LGBTQI+ Rights at Stake

Project 2025 is an initiative by the Heritage Foundation that, among other things, strongly opposes LGBTQI+ and immigrant rights, and racial equality. Some concerning ideas brought forward in Project 2025 are: mass deportation as well as ending the asylum system, censoring discussions on race and gender in schools, eradicating any laws that protect LGBTQI+ individuals, and cutting funding to any schools or medical facilities that protect or provide gender-affirming care to trans people.

Project 2025 is a direct threat to the rights of LGBTQI+ people, and it is critical that Americans speak out against its implementation. 

As a community, we must act together to make our voices heard in defence of LGBTQI+ rights.

What actions will you take today to be part of a movement for change?

Donate in support of this program, volunteer to create a Community of Care, and alert your representatives to the importance of the Welcome Corps Program.