2022 LGBTIQ Refugee Pride: Our Stories, Part II

ORAM is celebrating LGBTIQ Refugee Pride by giving the folks whom we serve a platform to share their stories. This blog is the second in a two-part series that highlights the diversity of the displaced queer community, as well as the diverse forms of support that ORAM provides in response to their unique needs.

Atilio, an HIV-positive gay man from Venezuela, now lives in Mexico City. He is working on obtaining the necessary certificates to be able to enroll in a local university, a journey through which ORAM is supporting him.

Atilio had a difficult time when he first arrived, "I studied tourism and I also studied public relations. I have my interior decorating license and also I have a diploma as a teacher. I'm a professional in my country, but when I came here... I became a refugee. I could not bring any of my titles, my professional titles. So here I have no education."

However, Atilio describes himself as "very positive." He says, "I never feel like I'm less than anybody else. I'm a refugee, but I'm still a human being, wherever I go. So I always stand up for myself. No matter where I go. And I know that my value is the same as any other people from this country and, you know, in the world.”

Rokie, a bisexual single dad from Uganda, now lives in Kakuma Refugee Camp, where he runs a beauty shop that receives funding from ORAM. His shop doubles as a hub where he trains other LGBTIQ refugees in cosmetology and business skills.

Rokie told us about his experience teaching other refugees, "I’m an expert in nail detailing — designing nails for ladies, foot spa, massages... through ORAM we managed to have seed funding and open up a small shop which is acting as a training hub... The main goal is training our fellow refugees so that they can become independent financially... so that they can also create their own businesses in the future."

Rokie is grateful that he has the means to consistently support his six-year-old daughter, even when times are tough. He hopes to continue supporting the bisexual refugee community through the organization that he founded, Bisexual Organization of East Africa (BISOEA), the first organization of its kind in the region!

Venus, a trans woman from Azacualpa, Honduras, moved to Tijuana, Mexico in January of 2022. Looking back on what pushed her to leave her home country, Venus said that, "In Honduras, everything was great with my work, my family, and my friends. Until I had to flee because of the discrimination, gender violence, and threats."

She now lives at El Jardin de las Mariposas, an LGBTIQ refugee shelter that ORAM supports. She says that the part of her journey that she is most proud of is "having people who worry and care about me more at El Jardin and ORAM."

Venus shared some advice she has for other asylum seekers, "be careful, because the journey is very difficult… So take care of yourself and don't forget about God. Don't forget to ask him for help with achieving your dreams."

Kelly, a transgender man from Uganda, relocated to Nairobi in 2018.

To support himself, Kelly does poultry farming work with Team No Sleep, a local community-based organization (CBO) that supports LGBTIQ refugees, and utilizes his skills in barbering, which ORAM helped him attain through free trainings.

Kelly told us, "No matter everything I went through and the difficulties and the suicidal thoughts and so many things, I still stand... for what I am and what I want. I hadn't realized that I'm transgender until 2019. And I'm just proud that I can stand up and say I'm trans and I'm growing... to be this person I want."

Jennifer, a trans woman from El Salvador, arrived in Tijuana four months ago. She lives in El Jardin de las Mariposas, an LGBTIQ refugee shelter that ORAM supports.

When we asked Jennifer which part of her journey as a trans migrant she is most proud of, she told us, "I am proud because I left my country — I left the place where I was discriminated against and I came here to Mexico to be able to apply for asylum in the U.S. And even though here in Mexico there is a lot of discrimination...I am proud because I made it to El Jardin, where they support us and they keep us moving forward and help us achieve our dreams. Thanks to the organizations that help El Jardin, El Jardin can continue to help us."

Jennifer also spoke of her dreams for the future, "My dream is to arrive to the U.S., to be able to help my family because my family supported me a lot… to be able to study and to be an activist and defend the rights of our community."

The entire series can be found on our Twitter, and the individual stories can be found on our Facebook and Instagram @ORAMRefugee. We encourage you to engage with these stories — and their storytellers — on our social media channels.

Please also consider donating today so that we can protect and empower more LGBTIQ refugees like Atilio, Rokie, Venus, Kelly, and Jennifer globally.