As the devastating conflict in Ukraine unfolds, GiveOut brought together a range of expert voices to brief our supporters on the current situation facing LGBTQI people in Ukraine and how our community and allies can provide support.
“Believe me, not so many people want to go abroad and stay there forever. They want their life back in Ukraine,” stated Olena Shevchenko, an LGBTQI Ukrainian activist who spoke at our briefing event on 5 April. Over 4 million people have now fled their homes in Ukraine to find refuge in neighbouring countries such as Poland, Hungary and Romania.
GiveOut hosted an LGBTQI community briefing to provide an opportunity for our supporters to learn about the current situation for LGBTQI people in Ukraine and those forced to flee, and to find out what we can all do to provide support. Chaired by Daniel Gerring, a trustee of GiveOut and Refugees at Home, our expert panel included Olena Shevchenko from Insight, Paul Jansen from OutRight Action International, Nancy Kelley from Stonewall, and Sonia Lenegan from Rainbow Migration.
“The humanitarian system that goes into conflict situations is atrocious at providing support to LGBTQI people” Nancy stated when discussing why the situation in Ukraine is an LGBTQI issue. As evidenced in emergencies before this, such as in Afghanistan or Zambia, our communities are either disproportionately affected or directly targeted in times of crisis.
The same applies for the situation in Ukraine, with Olena saying “those people that need it, the most marginalised ones, including just women as a class, you know, they just don’t get it,” when discussing the lack of humanitarian support for LGBTQI people in the country. Medication has been hard to access since the war began: “we are trying to buy it in other countries and somehow transfer it to Ukraine – it is a very hard task for us, but somehow we manage,” said Olena.
Nancy noted the unique challenges facing trans women: “they don’t have the correct gender markers on their identity documents and are finding it very difficult to exit Ukraine and are at risk of conscription.” While some people are finding it hard to exit Ukraine, others are finding refuge in countries such as Russia or Hungary which are not safe for LGBTQI people.
For those Ukrainians wanting to come to the UK, the situation is very complex. As of right now, there are three schemes on offer for Ukrainian people entering the UK: the Ukraine Family Scheme, Homes for Ukraine, and Ukrainian Extension Scheme. Sonia highlights that these schemes fall short for all Ukrainian refugees, but more so for those who are LGBTQI: “It’s also concerning that the schemes that have been announced are for Ukrainian nationals only. So, we know that excludes LGBTQI people in particular who have gone to Ukraine because it’s safer, for example, than Russia.”
Although the community in Ukraine is struggling, there are many organisations offering support. Through their fundraising appeal supported by GiveOut, OutRight Action International have distributed over $625,000 in funds to 34 organisations working on the ground offering support. Talking about the resilience of these organisations, Paul stated “I am thankful and grateful for our friends in Ukraine who never were humanitarian organisations, I think that’s an important thing to note. These were LGBTQ+ organisations working on advocacy, on rights etc. and they’re now forced into a completely different ball game.”
So how can you support this vital work? Here are five recommendations from the experts:
- Donate to OutRight’s LGBTQI Ukraine appeal through GiveOut. 100% of donations will go directly to support LGBTQI groups in Ukraine and neighbouring countries. As a charity registered in the UK, GiveOut can claim Gift Aid on all eligible donations, an extra 25p for every £1 given.
- Sign the petition and write to your MP to call on our government to support LGBTQI people coming from Ukraine into the UK.
- Host a refugee. If you live in an urban area, have a spare room and are willing to host for a minimum of 3-6 months, you can sign up with Refugees at Home.
- Get your business involved. Ask your business to develop long term relationships with LGBTQI organisations in and around Ukraine. For guidance, see here and here.
- Fundraise to support LGBTQI Ukrainians. Set up a fundraiser through GiveOut – our supporters have run marathons, auctioned art and held events to raise money.
Watch the full recording of the event below.