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In opening their doors to asylum seekers Whitney Reid (center) and Andre Folkes (right), Bill Kadish (left) and his wife Marie were proud to give their historical home, once a station on the Underground Railroad, renewed purpose. Credit: Jessie DeStefano
Boston Harbor LGBT asylum seekers speak with Pride about life back home and around the Hub. By
Jessie DeStefano
It is illegal to be LGBT in more than 70 countries. And in seven, homosexuality is punishable by death. Many LGBT people are forced to flee persecution in these countries and seek refuge in the United States. The United States may grant political asylum to foreign nationals, if they fear persecution in their home country because of their race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group. Since 1994, the United States has recognized sexual minorities as a social group eligible for asylum. While the sta76 | Boston Pride 2015
tus of transgender and gender non-conforming individuals is less clear, there have been several non-precedential cases in which transgender identity was accepted as grounds for seeking asylum. It is uncertain how many LGBT people have sought asylum in the United States. As LGBT asylum cases are filed under the “particular social group� classification, their number is aggregated with those of other recognized groups. Furthermore, many undocumented LGBT people qualify for asylum, but are either unable to access the
