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🌈 2 more weeks until the Canal Parade during WorldPride Amsterdam!
For queer refugees and undocumented people, Pride is so much more than a celebration. It's a day when they can be visible, be themselves, and show together: The Rainbow Knows No Borders.
Our 100 participants have no income of their own and therefore can't pay for their participation themselves. At the same time, we have a lot of costs to make the boat possible: T-shirts, travel costs, food, drinks, banners, and other materials.
We're working hard to finalize our budget 💜 Will you help?Your donation makes sure everyone can join in — and that our message is visible on and along the canals.
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Queer to Support is the queer community of the Here to Support foundation. The community organizes meetings where queer refugees can meet each other and is committed to raising the visibility of queer refugees in the Netherlands.
Every other week, the community comes together to cook and share a meal. There is also a varied program: participants engage in conversations about queer identity and sexuality, they vogue, take action, or watch a film together.
In addition, the group advocates for the visibility of queer refugees in the Netherlands. They join protests, participate in Pride on a boat, and take part in panels and other events.
Queer to Support also provides social support for questions related to identity, well-being, sexuality, and the asylum procedure.
1980 - LGBTQI+ asylum was proposed by Becker in the Netherlands.
1981 - the Raad van State recognised sexual orientation as an asylum motive.
1992 - the first asylum case on the basis of sexual orientation was approved.
2001 - first gay marriage in the Netherlands.
2004 - Asylum on the basis of sexual orientation was included in the EU Directive (Sabine Jansen 2018: 15).
2011 - Gender identity was also named in the EU directive (Sabine Jansen 2018: 15).
2012-2019 - major shifts in asylum policy on LGBTQI+. From the IND accepting peoples asylum request who claimed they had a certain sexual orientation/gender identity and feared persecution - to ‘testing the credibility of someone's statement, and assessing whether it was credible enough to grant an asylum request' (Sabine Jansen 2018: 19).
Queer Asylum
To apply for asylum on the basis of sexual orientation and/or gender identity and expression (SOGIE), your claim must be deemed credible by the IND (Dutch Immigration and Naturalization Service). Your own words are the most important evidence in this regard. If the IND decides that your sexual orientation and/or gender identity and expression is not credible, your asylum application will be rejected and the Dutch government will expect you to return to your country of origin. This is not an option for most people, because they have fled persecution and criminalization of the LGBTQIA+ community in their country of origin.
“Queer to Support has become part of me. It offered me a safe space and a refuge from the discrimination I suffered in my country. It has helped me normalize diverse sexual orientations and gender identities. I was also able to connect with different people from different parts of the world. This has helped me to not feel isolated, but rather to have a sense of belonging. Through the meals we share on Monday evenings and, for example, the Vogueing classes. These classes help people to express themselves freely and build confidence."
Dorothy, Queer to Support
Current issues in Queer Asylum
1. The procedure focuses strongly on credibility of someone’s sexual orientation/gender identity, while the risk and danger are often assessed only after credibility is accepted.
See the work instruction for the IND here.
2. People are judged from a Eurocentric and male perspective - Sabine Jansen (2018) shares an important reflection on the current IND strategy: the concepts of 'coming out process' and 'process of self-acceptance' seem to be rooted in the stereotypical idea that the development of a homosexual sexuality follows fixed stages or phases. One problem with this is that such models are primarily applicable to white, Western, middle-class men. This makes it likely that other groups, such as most refugees in particular, will be unable to meet these expectations. Another problem is that, while asylum law favors identity over behavior, it is by no means common for everyone in the world to think in terms of sexual identity (Sabine Jansen 2018: 39).
“Terminology to describe diversity in sexual orientation and gender identity has changed over time. Although currently dominant discourses speak of sexuality as being fluid, sexual categorisation remains rigid within a legal context. Decision makers must judge the credibility of the claimants’ narratives, yet they are biased by Western understandings of lgbtqi+ identities (e.g. about shame).” (Andrew Shield)
3. Specific issue for trans refugees / gender identity claims: in practice, claims related to sexual orientation and gender identity are often processed under one broader LGBTI/SOGI category and assessed through the same general credibility framework. This can mean trans-specific experiences are not always well understood or assessed in a distinct way (e.g. specific forms of violence, visibility, documents, medical/transition-related needs).
PAPAYA KUIR aims to highlight the precarious realities of Trans and Queer Latinx asylum seekers, who don’t manage to obtain refugee statuses because of the Dutch immigration refusal to acknowledge that our lives are endangered in our countries of origin, as well as inform society of the dangerous realities we and our communities are confronted with back in our countries.
4. NGO dilemma: NGOs need to prepare people for the current system, but in doing so may also unintentionally adapt to and reinforce the system’s logic.
Unequal access to support: big differences depending on location (e.g. near Amsterdam or not), networks, and structured support often only starts in a second procedure.
External links and articles
Sexuality and Asylum: progress and ambivalence in The Netherlands, 1979-1986
Buhari, J.L.J.; Shield, A.D.J.; Kuipers, L.; Schrover, M.L.J.C.
De waarheid zal me bevrijden
Alejandra Ortiz
Amsterdam will be celebrating WorldPride next month, with ‘Unity’ as its theme. But what does unity mean for queer refugees and activists who have been living in the Netherlands for years, are active within the queer community, yet are not believed by the IND? The WorldPride organisers say they want to promote visibility and awareness of LGBTIQ+ issues. Members of Queer to Support are therefore calling on everyone involved in WorldPride not to forget queer refugees and activists who have sought protection here.
Authors:
Aisha, Benjamin, Louisa and Savannah are affiliated with Queer to Support, a queer community for undocumented people in Amsterdam, which forms part of the Here to Support foundation.
WorldPride is a month of visibility, protest, celebration and, in the words of former alderwoman Touria Meliani, “a continuous commitment to equality, inclusion and human rights” (Parool, 2025). Activists from all over the world are being invited to the Netherlands to speak on these issues, including at the Human Rights Conference.
In a month in which Amsterdam is committed to equality, inclusion and human rights, it is important that we take a critical stance on failing policies. To everyone taking part in Pride this year – whether by celebrating, demonstrating, or simply waving a flag: could you prove why you are or are not queer? For Aisha and Benjamin – co-authors of this piece, queer activists from Nigeria and Uganda, and members of Queer to Support – that is not a hypothetical question. It is the question on which their right to stay here depends, and to which the IND has so far consistently replied, ‘No, not credible’.
Neither Aisha nor Benjamin can return to their country of origin because people who are lesbian or gay (as well as others from the LGBTIQ+ community) are persecuted there. It is prohibited by law and is not accepted by society either. Returning would mean going back into the closet. Furthermore, their visibility and activism in the Netherlands mean that they face an increased risk if they return. Photos and videos of their public appearances can easily be found online by the government and people from their communities.
It is fantastic that the Pride organisers want to raise the profile of LGBTIQ+ issues and highlight the vulnerability of those involved. The organisers are also doing their best to achieve this by providing a platform during Canal Pride for groups such as Queer to Support.
But is that enough? Around WorldPride, the Netherlands will once again present itself as a leading nation for the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ+) people, but even here there are people who cannot (fully) enjoy all these hard-won freedoms. This year’s theme, Unity, does not feel genuine as long as queer activists are unable to obtain protection, despite frantic efforts to achieve this.