Category: South Sudan

A Journey of Survival, Resilience, and Hope

For International Refugee Day

by Charity Austin

Ten years ago, I never imagined that one day I would become a refugee. Like many people, I believed that becoming a refugee was something that happened to others. I had never thought about fleeing my country, seeking asylum, or rebuilding my life in a foreign land.

That changed within a matter of months.

After surviving a violent mob attack because of who I am, remaining in my home country was no longer safe. The threats continued, and I faced a difficult choice: stay and risk my life, or leave everything behind in search of safety. I chose to flee. At the time, I did not fully understand what it meant to be a refugee. I only knew that I needed to survive.

A Refugee’s Life

Being a refugee means more than crossing a border. It means arriving in a place where you have no family, no support system, and often no clear information about what comes next. It means living with uncertainty while trying to rebuild your life from nothing. When you are struggling to find food, shelter, and safety, it is difficult to imagine your future.

My experience taught me that anyone can become a refugee. Refugees are not born refugees. They are ordinary people whose lives are disrupted by war, violence, persecution, and human rights abuses. For this reason, we must all advocate for peace, inclusion, and respect for human dignity in our communities.

International Refugee Day is important because it reminds us that refugees deserve to be seen, heard, and supported. To me, it represents love, solidarity, and hope. It is a day when the world recognizes the courage and resilience of millions of people who have been forced to flee their homes.

In 2021, I celebrated World Refugee Day for the first time in Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya. The theme focused on inclusion and belonging, and for many LGBTQ refugees, it was a rare opportunity to feel recognized and valued. It reminded us that despite the challenges we faced, our lives mattered.

Life as a refugee can be extremely difficult, especially for LGBTQ refugees. The hardships extend beyond displacement, hunger, and poverty. Many LGBTQ refugees face violence, discrimination, harassment, exclusion, and threats because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Sometimes, surviving one challenge only means facing another. If you survive hunger, you may still face violence. If you find shelter, you may still face discrimination.

In many countries of asylum, refugees face barriers to employment, education, healthcare, and social inclusion. LGBTQ refugees often experience additional discrimination, making it even harder to access opportunities that would allow them to live independently and with dignity. The inability to secure work and earn a livelihood leaves many vulnerable to poverty, exploitation, homelessness, and violence.

Trans Inclusion Group

In 2022, violence against transgender refugees in Kakuma increased significantly. We experienced transphobic attacks, arbitrary arrests, threats, and arson incidents that put our lives at risk. Many transgender refugees lived in fear, uncertain whether they would survive another day.

In response to these challenges, we came together and formed Trans Inclusion Group, a refugee-led organization created by and for transgender refugees. What began as a small support network grew into a platform for advocacy, protection, and community empowerment. Through Trans Inclusion Group, we documented human rights abuses, raised awareness about the realities faced by LGBTQ refugees, provided peer support, and advocated for safety, dignity, and inclusion.

When forced evictions, violence, and discrimination threatened our community, we spoke out and demanded that refugee protection include everyone, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Our advocacy was not only about survival; it was about affirming that transgender refugees deserve the same rights, opportunities, and respect as every other human being.

The Personal Is Political

As I reflect on my own journey, I am reminded that my story is only one among thousands of LGBTQ refugee stories that remain untold. While I have had opportunities to speak about my experiences, many LGBTQ refugees continue to live in silence, afraid of violence, discrimination, or rejection. Sometimes, I feel that my voice is not heard enough, but I continue speaking because I know there are many others who can not.

World Refugee Day is more than a commemoration. It is a celebration of resilience, courage, hope, and belonging. It is an opportunity to recognize the strength of people who have survived unimaginable hardships and continue rebuilding their lives despite enormous obstacles.

Our shared goal should be to create welcoming communities where refugees and newcomers feel seen, valued, connected, and safe. No one should have to choose between hiding who they are and accessing protection. Every refugee deserves dignity, opportunity, and a chance to build a future.

Today, Trans Inclusion Group continues to amplify the voices of transgender refugees who are too often overlooked. In refugee camps and settlements, many LGBTQ refugees still struggle to access safety, employment, healthcare, and opportunities to rebuild their lives. By sharing our stories and standing together, we challenge discrimination and create hope for those who feel invisible.

World Refugee Day 2026

On this World Refugee Day, I call on governments, humanitarian organizations, community leaders, and individuals to listen to refugee voices, stand against discrimination, and support inclusion for all refugees, including LGBTQ refugees. Together, we can create a world where belonging is not a privilege for a few, but a right for everyone.

As we commemorate World Refugee Day 2026, Trans Inclusion Group joins refugee communities around the world in calling for a future where every person seeking safety is welcomed with dignity, protected from discrimination, and given the opportunity to thrive.

Our message to the world is simple: create more welcoming environments for refugees and newcomers. Let us build communities where refugees are not only protected but empowered to thrive. Let us choose peace over conflict, inclusion over exclusion, and hope over fear.

Because anyone can become a refugee, and everyone deserves the chance to live in safety, dignity, and belonging.

Author: Charity Austin. All rights to this article are returned to the author. This blog © 2026 Geoff Allshorn. I acknowledge the Wurundjeri‑Willam people of the Kulin Nation, the Traditional Custodians of the land on which this work was prepared, and pay my respects to Elders past and present.

LGBTQ+ Refugees Left Behind

The Human Cost of Foreign Aid Cuts

Published in the lead-up to commemorate Africa Day on 25 May
by Charity Austin

Charity is an activist, writer, and community leader, and the founder of Trans Inclusion Group (formerly Trans Initiative Gorom). Her work focuses on human rights, social justice, displacement, resilience, and amplifying marginalized voices through storytelling and advocacy. Through her writing and activism, she brings attention to the lived experiences, struggles, and resistance of LGBTQ+ communities in East Africa.

Kakuma (photo supplied)

For many people living safely in wealthy countries, foreign aid may sound like a political debate or a government budget issue. But for refugees in Africa, especially LGBTQ+ refugees, foreign aid is often the difference between life and death.

Under the U.S. administration led by President Donald Trump, major changes to foreign aid and humanitarian funding have been introduced. One of the most significant shifts has been the restructuring and severe reduction of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), which was formerly the world’s largest foreign aid agency. In 2025, USAID’s operations were significantly cut back, with many of its functions reduced or transferred into other government structures, including the U.S. State Department.

For refugee communities across Africa, these changes have had immediate and life-threatening consequences.

In already under-resourced refugee settlements, people are now facing even deeper shortages of food, clean water, shelter, and essential medical care. For transgender refugees and other LGBTQ+ people, who already experience discrimination and exclusion within these systems, the impact has been especially severe.

Reality on the Ground

According to Trans Inclusion Group (TIG), a trans-led initiative supporting LGBTQ+ refugees in displacement, reduced humanitarian funding has directly worsened the living conditions of transgender refugees who rely on aid programs for survival.

Many transgender refugees live with HIV/AIDS and depend entirely on donor-funded clinics and humanitarian health programs for antiretroviral medication. When funding is reduced or programs are disrupted, access to treatment becomes unstable. Missing medication is not a minor interruption—it is life-threatening.

Image by Dan Sudermann from Pixabay

The mental health impact has also been devastating. Many LGBTQ+ refugees fled persecution, violence, and arrest in their home countries, only to find themselves trapped in overcrowded and unsafe refugee settlements where protection is limited and stigma is widespread.

At the same time, reductions in refugee resettlement pathways to the United States have worsened the crisis. For many LGBTQ+ refugees facing ongoing threats, resettlement is not a privilege, it is often the only route to safety. When these pathways are slowed or suspended, people remain stuck in dangerous environments with no realistic exit.

Some transgender refugees previously escaped extreme violence in places such as Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya, hoping for safety through resettlement programs. Instead, many now remain stranded in other settlements with shrinking international support and increasing vulnerability.

These policy decisions are not abstract. They directly determine whether a person receives HIV medication, whether someone eats that day, or whether a refugee survives another attack.

For many refugees in Africa, daily life is already a struggle for survival. Reducing humanitarian funding and restructuring key aid institutions like USAID only deepens that crisis.

Trans Inclusion Group (TIG) continues to highlight these realities and calls for urgent international attention, renewed funding, and stronger protection mechanisms for LGBTQ+ refugees who are being left behind in global policy shifts.

LGBTQ+ refugees deserve dignity, healthcare, protection, and the chance to live safely. Their lives should never be treated as collateral damage in political decisions about foreign aid.

“I was thirsty”

In Kakuma refugee camp (Kenya), water has become a daily struggle for many refugees following cuts to humanitarian support. These photos capture people digging into dry ground in search of water, filling jerrycans by hand because formal water systems are under severe strain. With reduced USAID funding affecting essential services, families are forced to spend hours searching for unsafe and scarce water sources just to survive. Access to clean water is not a privilege, it is a basic human right.

Searching for water in Kakuma (photos supplied)

I can personally testify that this crisis is real because I experienced it myself together with other transgender refugees before being resettled. In Kakuma refugee camp, there were days when my friends and I would wake up very early and spend hours searching for water because the normal supply points had run dry or were overcrowded. Sometimes we had no choice but to dig shallow holes in the ground and wait for dirty water to collect so we could fill our jerrycans. The water was often unsafe, but when people are desperate, they use whatever they can find. For transgender refugees who already faced discrimination, violence, and exclusion inside the camp, the struggle for clean water became even more dangerous and exhausting.

(Photo supplied)

This situation is not only happening in Kakuma. Many transgender refugees in Gorom refugee settlement in South Sudan are also facing severe water shortages and humanitarian neglect. People walk long distances under extreme heat just to access a small amount of water for drinking, cooking, and bathing. In some cases, refugees are forced to rely on unsafe water sources – even from swamps – that expose them to disease and other health risks. These experiences show that the humanitarian crisis affecting transgender refugees is not abstract — it is happening to real people every day, across different refugee settlements, where survival itself has become a daily struggle.

Human Stories, Not Statistics

For many transgender refugees, the impact of aid cuts is not just political, it is deeply personal and life-threatening

One transgender woman living in the refugee camp had been relying on antiretroviral medication (ARVs) to manage HIV and stay healthy. But when she recently went to the clinic for her routine refill, she was told that the medication was no longer available. With humanitarian health services under strain and supplies running low, she returned home without the treatment she depends on to survive. She now lives in fear, uncertain when or if she will be able to access the medicine again.

I also have a friend who stopped taking the ARVs he had before the aid was cut, because he wasn’t sure that he would get another dose of medication.

Trans Inclusion Group advocates for queer refugee safety

Such stories reflect the reality facing many vulnerable refugees whose lives depend on consistent medical care. For transgender refugees, accessing healthcare is already difficult because of stigma, discrimination, and insecurity inside refugee settlements. Now, with funding cuts affecting clinics and humanitarian programs, many are being pushed into even more dangerous situations. These are not just statistics or policy discussions — they are real people losing access to food, clean water, and lifesaving medication every single day.

Looking the Other Way

Searching for water (photo supplied)

What makes this situation so painful is that these decisions were made by political leaders and administrations who chose to cut foreign aid despite knowing that millions of vulnerable people depend on that support to survive. The reduction of humanitarian assistance under the Trump administration has had devastating consequences for refugees already living in desperate conditions. Today, people are struggling to access food, clean water, shelter, and lifesaving medication, and many feel abandoned by the very countries and leaders that had the power to help.

I have painful news for those who made these decisions: people are now dying because of these cuts. Refugees who were already vulnerable are being pushed beyond their limits, with some unable to access medicine, food, or safe water. For refugees, this is not a political argument — it is about survival. The suffering taking place in refugee communities is real, and the world should not look away from the human consequences of these decisions.

Refugee Rights

Read other human rights contributions from Charity:

Protection Briefing
Published: 20 December 2025
Protection Challenges and Advocacy Engagement for LGBTQ Refugees in Gorom Refugee Settlement, South Sudan

Kakuma Pride 2023
Published: 11 July 2023
A report from Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya, possibly the only refugee camp in the world to ever have a Pride March, brutally shut down by homophobic Kenya Police.

This blog ©2026 Geoff Allshorn. All rights are hereby returned to the author, who can be contacted via this blog. I acknowledge the Wurundjeri-Willam people, the Traditional Custodians of the land on which this blog was prepared, and show my respect for Elders past and present.

Silenced but Unbroken

The Struggle of LGBTQ Refugees in East Africa

By Charity*

Photo supplied

For many refugees, displacement is already a story of loss, survival, and hope. But for LGBTQ refugees, it is often a story of double persecution — fleeing danger in their home countries only to face new threats in the very places meant to protect them.

I know this reality not from reports or headlines, but from lived experience.

In 2022, I was arrested in Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya alongside three other transgender women. Our only “crime” was existing openly as who we are. Life in the camp was marked by constant fear. Transphobic individuals targeted us regularly — through threats, harassment, and violence.

Despite reporting these incidents, our voices were often ignored within systems that were supposed to protect us.

We were told, directly and indirectly, to stay silent. But silence was never an option.

We chose to speak out, to organize, and to demand visibility. Our advocacy grew stronger, and so did the backlash. At one point, a Kenyan senator initiated a committee to investigate why LGBTQ refugees were in the camp. Instead of addressing the violence we faced, we were accused of “spreading homosexuality,” as if our existence was a threat.

Still, we refused to disappear.

Threats from the Senator in 2023 (photo supplied)

We organized a Pride event in the camp — a bold act of resilience and visibility. For a moment, it felt like we were reclaiming our dignity. But that moment was short-lived. Police officers arrived and dismantled our celebration, reinforcing the message that we were not welcome, even in spaces we tried to create for ourselves.

Months later, the situation escalated further. The camp manager issued a directive ordering all LGBTQ individuals to leave Kakuma or face arrest. When we requested legal documentation to leave safely, it was denied. Instead, arrests began.

We were trapped — told to leave, but denied the means to do so.

In a desperate search for safety, we made a difficult decision during a community meeting: to flee. South Sudan was the closest option, and despite the risks, we crossed the border hoping for protection.

But the challenges followed us.

Discrimination, insecurity, and lack of protection persisted.

Yet, even in the face of repeated hardship, we did not give up.

Through continued advocacy and the support of international allies, I was eventually relocated to Canada. Today, I live in safety — but my journey is far from over. My voice carries the stories of many who are still left behind.

In places like Gorom Refugee Camp in South Sudan, LGBTQ refugees continue to endure violence, exclusion, and neglect. They remain invisible in policies, unheard in systems, and unprotected in spaces meant to offer refuge. Many are still waiting for resettlement, for recognition, and for the basic dignity every human being deserves.

This is why I continue to speak out.

(Remembering LGBT+ refugees whose voice is often silenced)

International Priorities

Resettlement countries such as Canada should urgently prioritize LGBTQ refugees in refugee camps because they face layered and life-threatening vulnerabilities that go far beyond the general hardships of displacement. Unlike other refugee groups, LGBTQ individuals are often exposed to targeted violence, discrimination, and social exclusion both from within refugee communities and sometimes from local authorities, leaving them without meaningful protection or safe living conditions.

In many camps, there are limited or no specialized services such as safe housing, mental health support, protection mechanisms, or confidential reporting systems that address their specific needs. As a result, LGBTQ refugees are frequently forced to live in constant fear, isolation, and invisibility, where even accessing basic humanitarian assistance can expose them to further harm. Prioritizing their resettlement is therefore not about preference, but about protection of the most at-risk individuals within already vulnerable populations.

Countries like Canada, which have strong human rights commitments, have both the capacity and moral responsibility to ensure that LGBTQ refugees are given urgent pathways to safety, dignity, and long-term protection.

The international community must act urgently to protect LGBTQ refugees. This includes ensuring safe and inclusive asylum systems, addressing discrimination within refugee camps, and accelerating resettlement processes for those at risk.

Silence and inaction only deepen the suffering.

We are not asking for special treatment — we are asking for safety, dignity, and the right to exist.

Our resilience should not be mistaken for acceptance of injustice. We have endured, resisted, and survived. But survival is not enough.

It is time for the world to listen. It is time for change.

*Charity is an activist and refugee advocate who has previously written articles from Kakuma and Gorom.

This blog ©2026 Geoff Allshorn. All rights are hereby returned to the author. 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.

Protection Briefing

Published to coincide with International Human Solidarity Day 2025

Protection Briefing: Protection Challenges and Advocacy Engagement for LGBTQ Refugees in Gorom Refugee Settlement, South Sudan

Prepared by: Trans Initiative Gorom

Period Covered: May 2025 – Present

Purpose: To highlight protection concerns, advocacy engagement, and priority needs of LGBTQ refugees

1. Executive Summary

Since May 2025, LGBTQ refugees in Gorom Refugee Settlement have experienced increased protection concerns linked to changes in settlement arrangements and heightened community tensions. These developments have contributed to fear, instability, and uncertainty regarding safety and access to protection. Through advocacy, documentation, and engagement with UNHCR and international partners, LGBTQ refugees and community advocates have sought protection-oriented responses and durable solutions. While engagement has helped reduce some immediate risks, significant protection gaps remain.

2. Background and Context

LGBTQ refugees in Gorom Refugee Settlement have faced long-standing vulnerabilities related to discrimination, visibility, and social exclusion across refugee settings over several years. These challenges have affected access to services, safety, and overall well-being.

Following arrival in Gorom, proposals were made to relocate LGBTQ refugees to alternative locations, including remote camp settings. Community members raised concerns regarding isolation, limited access to information, and potential protection risks in such environments. Advocacy and dialogue with UNHCR and other relevant actors emphasized the importance of protection-sensitive approaches and individual risk assessments.

As a result of this engagement, relocation to remote settings was paused, and individual-level processes were initiated. While challenges persisted in Gorom, these efforts reduced immediate exposure to heightened protection risks.

3. Engagement on Durable Solutions

Given the prolonged protection challenges faced by LGBTQ refugees, community advocates engaged UNHCR to explore durable solutions. Many LGBTQ refugees have experienced repeated insecurity across multiple displacement contexts, highlighting the need for long-term protection pathways.

In 2024, some cases were referred for resettlement consideration through established UNHCR processes. However, during the Trump administration, the United States refugee resettlement program was suspended, resulting in the interruption of these resettlement pathways and increased uncertainty for individuals already facing heightened protection risks.

4. Recent Developments and Protection Impact

In early 2025, new settlement-level directives affecting LGBTQ refugees contributed to increased fear, instability, and concerns about safety. These developments resulted in disruptions to daily life, increased movement, and heightened anxiety among LGBTQ refugees.

The situation underscored the need for:

  • Protection-sensitive programming
  • Non-discriminatory access to services
  • Individualized protection assessments
  • Continued engagement between UNHCR and affected communities

    • 5. Advocacy and Community Engagement

    LGBTQ refugees and community advocates prioritized advocacy, documentation, and engagement with UNHCR, international partners, and humanitarian actors to raise awareness of protection needs. These efforts focused on constructive dialogue, visibility of protection concerns, and strengthening community-based protection mechanisms.

    Advocacy contributed to increased attention from international actors and reinforced the importance of inclusive and protection-centered approaches within the broader refugee response.

    6. Ongoing Protection Gaps

    Despite continued engagement, key challenges remain:

  • Limited availability of durable solutions for LGBTQ refugees at heightened risk
  • Persistent fear and uncertainty regarding safety
  • Insufficient access to safe and inclusive shelter options
  • Limited availability of specialized psychosocial and protection support

    • 7. Priority Recommendations

    We respectfully encourage UNHCR, donor governments, and humanitarian partners to:

    • Expand resettlement opportunities for LGBTQ refugees facing heightened protection risks
    • Increase protection-focused funding for inclusive shelter, psychosocial support, and community-based protection
    • Ensure non-discriminatory protection practices across all refugee assistance and services
    • Strengthen protection monitoring and community engagement mechanisms
    • Continue dialogue with LGBTQ refugee-led groups to inform protection responses

    8. Positive Developments

    We acknowledge and appreciate the engagement of resettlement countries, including Canada, in providing protection pathways to some LGBTQ refugees from Gorom. These examples demonstrate the life-saving impact of targeted protection interventions and the importance of expanding such opportunities.

    9. Conclusion: A Shared Responsibility

    The situation of LGBTQ refugees in Gorom highlights both ongoing protection challenges and the value of sustained advocacy and engagement with UNHCR and international partners. Continued support is essential to ensure safety, dignity and access to durable solutions for LGBTQ refugees facing heightening risks.

    Donor governments supporting the humanitarian response in Gorom play a vital role and can further strengthen protection by expanding resettlement slots for LGBTQI refugees most at risk. UNHCR remains central to coordinating protection responses and advancing durable solutions through continued engagement with affected communities.

    Donors and humanitarian partners can support flexible, protection-focused funding that prioritizes safety, shelter, and psychosocial support. Activists and civil society can continue to raise awareness responsibly, amplify refugee voices, and advocate for inclusive protection pathways. Together, these actions can help ensure that LGBTQI refugees are not left without options for safety and dignity.

    See Also:

    Geoff Allshorn and others, 1 June 2025. “When I Needed A Neighbour, Were You There?”, Humanist World blog.

    Daniel Itai, 28 May 2024. “South Sudan refugee camp is ‘not a safe haven’ for LGBTQ residents”, Washington Blade.

    Joto La Jiwe, 8 August 2025. “LGBTQI+ refugees in South Sudan trapped between a rock and a hard place”, 76 Crimes.

    Abraham Junior, 20 June 2025. “The forgotten struggle: LGBTQ refugees and asylum seekers in South Sudan”, Washington Blade.

    Abraham Junior, 2 September 2025. “We Exist, We Resist, We Are Not Invisible: Queer, Atheist, and Humanist Refugees in South Sudan”, The Humanist magazine.

    Paula Caro Rojas, 25 October 2024. “Surviving in the Gorom refugee camp in South Sudan”, Melting Pot Europa.

    Staff Writer, 21 June 2025. “LGBTQ+ Refugees in Gorom Denied Medical and Legal Help”, Radioyei.

    This blog ©2025 Geoff Allshorn. All rights hereby returned to the authors of this report, who can be contacted through me.
    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.