Eve Mohamad is active in refugee aid and comes out in public to share her experience. Photo: private
They are discriminated against in refugee accommodation in Germany and experience violence. Why Eve Mohamad from Syria is committed to queer refugees in Baden-Württemberg and what the state government wants to do.
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Many years had to pass before Eve Mohamad no longer had to fear for her safety and to come out as a trans woman to her family. Before fleeing Syria in 2012, she would have risked her life. In her new home in Heidelberg, she may not be persecuted by the state because of her gender identity, but her life is not easygoing. After her arrival in Germany in 2013, she was initially in close contact with people from Arab nations, where homosexuals, for example, are persecuted. Her family followed her to Germany. She also felt exposed to the social pressure she was exposed to in Syria. Today she can live openly as a woman, but hostilities are the order of the day as soon as she leaves her apartment: “I’m spat on, looked at strangely and insulted.”
There were other reasons why Eve took so long to come out after fleeing to Germany. Her case draws attention to a problem that is also being discussed in state politics: queer people who experience flight are often victims of physical abuse if they reveal their sexual orientation or gender identity while fleeing or in accommodation in Germany . The staff in the shelters are sometimes not trained enough to recognize queer people and make them aware of their rights.
application of the SPD
In the coalition agreement, the green-black government has committed itself to granting special protection status to people who are particularly in need of protection, for example from the LGBTTIQ community. According to the text, they are at risk of becoming victims of discrimination and violence. In May, the SPD, among others, made a request in the state parliament to remind them of this. According to the response from the state parliament, special protection needs are already being recorded in the state and protective measures are being taken.
Even if it is not statistically recorded how many refugees in Baden-Württemberg are really queer, according to experts it can be assumed that this applies to around five percent of the people worldwide and that this quota is therefore also realistic among refugees. Lucia Brass is the first chairwoman of the refugee council. She feels that not enough is being done to protect queer refugees. She has been working with refugees since the 1990s and is well acquainted with their concerns. “For queer refugees, it’s almost everyday life to be verbally harassed by homophobic security forces and roommates in the shelters, or they experience repeated significant violence,” she says.
Talk about intimate experiences
The fact that queer refugees put themselves in danger if they reveal their gender identity or sexual orientation is also problematic because their identity can be relevant to asylum law. If that is the case, according to Lucia Brass, it will cause further problems. “The person concerned has to talk about very intimate experiences as part of the asylum procedure,” she says. This can already violate the dignity of the person concerned. In addition, there is often only discriminatory vocabulary for describing gender identity or sexual orientation in the native language of the person. “It is certainly not easy for many people to talk about their own sexuality in front of strangers and in a formal context,” says Brass. It is therefore important that specially trained personnel are present at the asylum application hearing.
Refugees are often not sufficiently informed that they have special protection status if they are queer. Appropriate places where you can get advice are often far away. “Many queer refugees are also afraid of being forced out,” says Brass. This can result in individuals being excluded from their families. One way to protect people is to put them in special shelters. In the state initial reception centers, they should be given the opportunity to receive a key to their room so that they do not have to live in fear of being attacked.
Eve Mohamad, meanwhile, lives a life in which she learns to thrive. She studies psychology and is committed to helping people who have the same experiences as her. Her family cut off contact with her. But with new people arriving in Germany every day, it might make a difference if they hear from someone like Eve, so they don’t have to fear the consequences of living out their true identity.
2023-07-29 22:12:05
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