ECCAR cooperates with the Queer European Asylum Network in the development of expertise for counselling and support structures at the local level. As part of this cooperation, the Gunda Werner Institute in the Heinrich Böll Foundation (GWI) published a policy brief on recognising trauma in the asylum process for lesbian women. The key findings and recommendations presented in the policy brief are based on data collected from the research project "The Intersectionality of Gender and Sexuality in Asylum Applications by Lesbian Refugees". In the context of the research project, the authors analysed the hearing transcripts and decisions of the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees of the Federal Republic of Germany and court rulings of 30 lesbian refugees. The research shows that the specific realities of lesbian women's lives often remain invisible in the asylum process. As a result, lesbian women are not believed to be homosexual, their stories of persecution are considered unbelievable due to the difficult evidence, and/or their severe trauma is not recognised. The report (in German) can be downloaded here. For inquiries regarding the project and the report, please contact
Dr. Nina Held, Lecturer in Social Policy, School of Health & Society, University of Salford.
Dr. Mengia Tschalär, Adjunct Full Professor, John Jay College, City University of New York; Research Fellow, University of Bristol
