Raawiyah Rifath and Jessica Hambly have presented our joint data at the Symposium Sexuality, Nationality and Asylum: The New Plan for Immigration. which took place at Oxford Brookes University on 14 June 2023, and was organised by Dr. Alex Powell (Lecturer in Law, Oxford Brookes University).
We presented research from two research projects (ASYFAIR and Raawiyah’s Wellcome Trust funded PhD project).
ABSTRACT
Asylum and Sexual Orientation: The Problematic Global Northern Lens and the Nationality and Borders Act 2022
The UK government’s recent Nationality and Borders Act 2022 (NBA) is a missed opportunity to address issues faced by sexually diverse asylum claimants. In this paper we combine qualitative data from two major research projects spanning several disciplines, such as law, socio-legal studies, psychology, anthropology and geography. We explore first instance and judicial decision makers’ (potentially problematic) assessments of sexual orientation asylum claims in France, Germany, Greece and the UK, which often employ heteronormative Global Northern standards and definitions. Our data reveals problematic approaches by receiving states in determining an asylums seeker’s sexual orientation. European authorities involved in refugee status determination are preoccupied with identifying incoherencies, discrepancies and ‘untruths’ in asylum seekers’ narratives. The credibility of asylum seekers is often assessed through a Global Northern lens, which characterises credible narratives of one’s biography by a linear progression of time, critical self-reflection and rationalisation. Narratives that do not comply with socio-cultural expectations in the Global North may be dismissed, leaving little space for different cultural and intersectional experiences which is particularly problematic for people who base their asylum claim on their sexual orientation. They are often dismissed for not fitting into the Global Northern perception of how individuals self-identify, define and experience their sexual orientation, rendering them ‘undeserving’ of protection in Europe in the eyes of decision makers. Thus, our paper provides a thorough comparison of the asylum decision-making process for sexually diverse claimants between receiving states and indeed how the NBA is a seemingly missed opportunity to address and resolve persistent issues.
ASYFAIR 