Barely a month into the new presidential administration, LGBTQ+ Latinx immigrants are fearful for their futures – and advocacy organizations are struggling to keep up.
President Donald Trump is targeting undocumented and Latinx immigrants, declaring a national emergency on the Southern border, suspending the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program, and ending birthright citizenship under the 14th amendment (a move that was temporarily blocked by U.S. District Judge John Coughenour for being “blatantly unconstitutional”).
On Jan. 26, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) made arrests in Chamblee, Brookhaven, Lilburn, and Doraville – where they raided a Hispanic church and arrested a parishioner.
Latinx advocacy organizations like Latino LinQ, which addresses health care needs for the LGBTQ+ Latinx community, have been overwhelmed with calls from immigrants who don’t know what to do.
“We’re quickly realizing that we’re going to have to expand beyond [health care] now, and we’re having to reach out to other nonprofits and get training,” Eric Rangel, the Executive Director of Latino LinQ, told Georgia Voice. “We’re being stretched a little thin here, you know?”
Calls to Latino LinQ since Election Day have covered concerns from HIV-positive immigrants who are fearful about clinic raids and general concerns about getting access to necessary medications if detained.
“They’re very hesitant about wanting to go their clinic follow-ups for their HIV diagnoses,” Rangel said. “They’re afraid of being pulled over from going home to the clinic, they’re afraid that the clinic will get raided, because this new administration has said they will raid churches, schools, clinics, any kind of health care facilities, anywhere that was previously considered a safe place.”
According to a 2024 report from Immigration Equality, the National Immigrant Justice Center, and Human Rights First, a majority of LGBTQ+ and HIV-positive individuals in ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection custody received inadequate medical care or were denied care altogether – the consequences of which Rangel says can be “very, very detrimental.”
“The other thing is that if they get deported back to their home countries, how do they get access to these medications?” he said. “Especially if they’re coming from very rural areas or places where reaching out for this kind of treatment is heavily stigmatized, even by their own medical providers.”
The extent of anti-LGBTQ+ violence in ICE and CBP detention extends beyond health care. The same study found that one-third of participants reported sexual abuse, physical assault, or sexual harassment, and almost all faced verbal abuse or threats of violence and assault.
For LGBTQ+ asylum seekers, new blockades to legal immigration may force them to stay in potentially dangerous environments. Legal immigration has been made more difficult through the reinstatement of the Migrant Protection Protocols program, a policy forcing Mexican asylum seekers to pursue their cases in Mexico, and the shutdown of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection One app, which allowed undocumented immigrants to submit information and schedule appointments allowing them to enter the U.S.
Thirty countries in Central America, South America, and the Caribbean do not allow same-sex marriage, and in five, homosexuality is illegal.
For those who are undocumented, Rangel suggests making a plan: know who will care for your kids if you are detained, have your legal documents easily accessible, and know your rights:
- You have the right to remain silent, and do not have to speak with immigration officers
- ICE must show a court-ordered document to enter your home or search belongings
- You have the right to an attorney
- Speak with an attorney before signing anything
Rangel urges U.S. citizens to vote with immigrants in mind and in the meantime, ask your friends ho you can help and get them access to know your rights cards, immigration attorneys, and other vital resources.
To learn more about Latino LinQ, visit latinolinq.org.
