He was a young man from Uganda, probably in his early twenties. I never saw his face or learnt his name. But he was the first person to enter a new safe house, freshly created in Nairobi to accommodate LGBT+ refugees. I had been honoured to be the first donor to contribute, and the money had purchased the first two bare mattresses.
His is a photo I have sadly lost long ago – but one I will never forget. Its mixture of hope and despair, its pathos, its sad commentary upon humanity – linger in my brain. It was about five years ago, and a new community-based organisation in Nairobi was opening a safe house – and because I was their first donor, the manager of the CBO sent me the photo of their first intake – this young man, standing there in the foreground, with his back to the camera.
I studied the photo and wondered about the young man. Was he sad at leaving his family and home and country, possibly forever? Was he relieved to be in a safe house – or was he feeling downcast that his entire life’s aspirations and belongings could be contained within one small hand-held suitcase? Was he optimistic, or lonely and frightened?
I don’t know what happened to him, but I have been honoured to buy a number of similar suitcases in subsequent years to help others embarking on a journey towards resettlement.
But the man remains one of my heroes. These are people who risk everything to seek a better life, away from war and poverty, disaster and oppression, violence and genocide.
On World Refugee Day, the world is challenged to consider the plight of people forced by circumstances to flee their homes and seek asylum elsewhere.
Meanwhile, four of my trans refugee friends and associates in Africa have recently been attacked in separate public attacks, one being permanently disfigured after a machete attack, and another needing medical attention but lacking the money to get medical assistance. In a plea to possibly save this last friend, another refugee pleads to me today: “Please, she needs your help…” While privileged people argue about whether JK Rowling or Richard Dawkins are permitted their free speech to spread anti-trans sentiment, my friends experience the real-life consequences of such bigotry being normalised around the world.
We are the World
One refugee friend notes:
Being a refugee is hard. Being an LGBTQ+ refugee is even harder.
You run from your home country because of hate—because your identity is not accepted, and your life is in danger. You escape with hope for safety, dignity, and peace. But when you arrive in another country, there is no family waiting. No friends. No relatives. Just unfamiliar faces and systems that don’t see you.
In the refugee camp, you face another kind of pain. You are not treated like others because you weren’t born here. And worse—they criminalize who you are.
You are excluded. Discriminated against. Forgotten.
Being a refugee should never mean losing your humanity. Being transgender or queer should never mean losing your right to safety.
We are not asking for much—just to be seen. To be safe. To be treated with dignity.
#WorldRefugeeDay #LGBTQRefugeesExist #TransRightsAreHumanRights #ProtectLGBTQRefugees #WeDeserveSafetyToo Urgent Action Fund-Africa Urgent Action Fund for Feminist Activism International Trans Fund GATE – Global Action for Trans Equality UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency @highlight
Another refugee friend sends greetings:
Today, as the world pauses to honor the strength, courage, and resilience of refugees, I raise my voice not just in remembrance—but in solidarity.
Refugees are not statistics.
We are mothers, fathers, children, dreamers.
We once had homes, communities, and futures—until conflict, disaster, or persecution forced us to flee.????️???? As an LGBTQ+ refugee in Gorom Refugee Settlement camp in south sudan , I live this reality daily. I fled persecution hoping for safety, but even here, challenges continue. Yet we hold on—to life, to hope, to each other.
This year’s theme, “Solidarity with Refugees,” is a call to action.
It demands more than kind words.
It calls for inclusion, justice, and shared humanity.???? We need a world where refugees are not just welcomed but empowered. Where we are given access to education, livelihoods, safety, and dignity.
Because refugees are not a burden—we are survivors, peacemakers, and contributors to a better future.On this World Refugee Day, I choose compassion.
I choose justice.
I choose solidarity.Let’s build a world where no one is forced to flee—and where those who do are never left behind.
hashtag#WorldRefugeeDay2025
hashtag#RefugeesAreHuman
hashtag#SolidarityWithRefugees
hashtag#LGBTQRefugees
hashtag#GoromVoicesMatter
hashtag#OneLifeSaved
hashtag#HumanityFirst
Another friend writes an appeal to the world:
To the Queer international community,
I am a concerned queer individual alerting LGBTQIA2S+ organizations to the existence of Gorom Refugee Camp in South Sudan, which hosts roughly 450 queer and trans refugees and asylum seekers from Uganda, DRC, Rwanda, Burundi, and Ethiopia. Everyday they are persecuted, facing abuse, bigotry, violence, targeted attacks, and isolation for being queer.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) should have facilitated a pathway to a safe haven by no. However, the UNHCR is underfunded due to a reduction in donor funding since Trump assumed office.
South Sudan’s queer refugees require immediate funding for shelter, food, water, personal hygiene supplies, and medical care, as well as vigorous long-term support to account for the failures of the UNHCR under Donald Trump.
It’s time for queer communities making up the imperial core to collectively shift our focus to the ways in which fascist policymaking in the west trickles down to the Global South, with aggressive consequences.
While celebration of queer identity in the West is certainly revolutionary, in 2025 given the political conditions we are in, I urge well-funded queer organizations to reallocate finances from celebrity appearances and parades, to communities such as the queer and trans people of Gorom Refugee Camp, who are starving and persecuted for their identities.
I hope people listen. Doing nothing to address a social evil means you are complicit.
©2025 Geoff Allshorn. I show my respect for Elders past and present and acknowledge the Wurundjeri-Willam people, the Traditional Custodians of the Land on which this blog was prepared.