Fleeing persecution

In a world that still persecutes, marginalises and discriminates LGBTQI+ individuals, and where asylum seekers and refugees are denied rights and have their basic humanity violated, this publication intends to understand the asylum policies the German government develops specifically tailored to the needs of LGBTQI+ asylum seekers and refugees and whether the literature has addressed the implementation of such policies across the European continent. LGBTQI+ asylum is a rather new field of research. Among the European states, Germany has been more open to asylum than other states in the continent and has received the world’s highest number of asylum seekers between 2010 and 2019, which justifies the interest in researching the asylum policies in place in that state beyond investigating the European scenario in general. The research combines theoretical and empirical analyses, as well as a systematic literature review in order to create a framework of protection and rights across the Europan continent. States in general still seem to lack social inclusion policies, as discrimination, homophobia, transphobia, and xenophobia are generalised social issues that permeates many European states. This publication hopes such a summary of European good practices and literature suggestions is taken into consideration by states around the world in order to make sure they are addressing LGBTQI+ asylum in an appropriate manner that respects individuals’ personal characteristics and humanity.

Sumário
PREFACE…………………………………………………………………………………………………… 23
INTRODUCTION ……………………………………………………………………………………. 25
Chapter 1
LGBTQI+ INDIVIDUALS AND THEIR ACCESS TO RIGHTS …………….. 31
1.1. FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHT TO BE ONESELF: A (NOT SO)
RECENT HISTORY………………………………………………………………………………….. 31
1.1.1. Stonewall, the needed catalyst ……………………………………………………. 31
1.1.2. The European LGBTQI+ panorama in the twentieth century…… 32
1.2. THEORISING SEXUALITY AND GENDER IDENTITY…………………. 34
1.3. VIOLATIONS OF HUMAN RIGHTS……………………………………………….. 40
1.4. CHALLENGING THE STATUS QUO……………………………………………… 42
Chapter 2
MIGRATION AS A HUMAN RIGHT …………………………………………………….. 47
2.1. FORCED DISPLACEMENT IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY… 47
2.2. ASYLUM POLICY IN THE EUROPEAN CONTINENT…………………. 50
2.2.1. The politicisation of asylum-seeking………………………………………….. 54
2.3. LGBTQI+ ASYLUM SEEKERS AS A PARTICULARLY
VULNERABLE GROUP……………………………………………………………………………. 56
2.4. UNHCR: LGBTQI+ INDIVIDUALS AS PART OF A
SOCIAL GROUP ………………………………………………………………………………………. 60
Chapter 3
A FRAMEWORK OF RIGHTS AND PROTECTION…………………………….. 65
3.1. THE EVOLUTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS CONCEPTS…………………. 65
3.1.1. The inception of western human rights…………………………………….. 65
3.1.2. The international framework and globalisation………………………… 68
3.1.3. Human rights as an inclusive, multicultural asset…………………….. 70
3.2. THE PRINCIPLE OF EQUALITY AND NON-DISCRIMINATION … 72
3.3. THE IMPORTANCE OF AN INTERSECTIONAL APPROACH……. 75
3.4. EUROPEAN FRAMEWORK FOR THE PROTECTION OF
LGBTQI+ INDIVIDUALS AGAINST DISCRIMINATION…………………….. 77
Chapter 4
EUROPEAN LGBTQI+ ASYLUM POLICIES: LITERATURE
DISCUSSION AND THE GERMAN FEDERAL PROGRAMME ………….. 83
4.1. RESEARCH DESIGN…………………………………………………………………………. 83
4.1.1. The common standards of the systematic research……………………. 84
4.1.1.1. University of São Paulo’s Portal ……………………………………………… 87
4.1.1.2. CAPES Portal ………………………………………………………………………….. 88
4.1.1.3. Dedalus……………………………………………………………………………………. 89
4.1.1.4. HeinOnline……………………………………………………………………………… 89
4.1.1.5. DART-Europe Portal……………………………………………………………….. 90
4.1.1.6. Bielefeld Academic Search Engine………………………………………….. 91
4.1.2. Selection of documents for the final cut …………………………………… 92
4.2. PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS OF DATA…………………………………. 93
4.2.1. European LGBTQI+ asylum policies: a systematic literature review… 93
4.2.1.1. Europe and the European Union……………………………………………. 93
4.2.1.2. Austria……………………………………………………………………………………… 97
4.2.1.3. Belgium……………………………………………………………………………………. 97
4.2.1.4. Denmark………………………………………………………………………………….. 98
4.2.1.5. France………………………………………………………………………………………. 98
4.2.1.6. Greece………………………………………………………………………………………. 99
4.2.1.7. Italy………………………………………………………………………………………….. 99
4.2.1.8. The Netherlands………………………………………………………………………. 100
4.2.1.9. Norway ……………………………………………………………………………………. 101
4.2.1.10. Portugal …………………………………………………………………………………. 101
4.2.1.11. Serbia……………………………………………………………………………………… 102
4.2.1.12. Spain ……………………………………………………………………………………… 102
4.2.1.13. Sweden…………………………………………………………………………………… 102
4.2.1.14. Switzerland…………………………………………………………………………….. 103
4.2.1.15. Turkey……………………………………………………………………………………. 103
4.2.1.16. The United Kingdom ……………………………………………………………. 103
4.2.2. LGBTQI+ asylum seekers and refugees in Germany………………….. 105
4.3. DISCUSSION ON THE SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW…….. 119
4.4. FINAL OBSERVATIONS ON EUROPEAN LGBTQI+ ASYLUM
POLICIES ………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 128
CONCLUSIONS……………………………………………………………………………………….. 131
REFERENCES …………………………………………………………………………………………… 135
APPENDIX A – INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT…………………………………………… 151