PinkNews: LGBTQ Refugees Welcome

In February 2022, the world united in horror as Vladimir Putin launched his barbaric invasion of Ukraine. Since then, millions have been forced to flee the country, with many more internally displaced.

While we’ll never know the true number of LGBTQ+ people impacted by this crisis, what we do know for a fact is that systemic discrimination will ensure that queer refugees are disproportionately affected.

It’s not just Ukraine, either. All across the world, LGBTQ+ people are forced to flee violence and persecution in search of safety and freedom.

That’s why PinkNews launched the LGBTQ+ Refugees Welcome campaign because, quite frankly, our community cannot rely on more traditional routes for the vital help it needs in these unprecedented times. Our global community cannot survive without your generosity.

Over the course of the 2022 festive season, PinkNews is sharing stories of LGBTQ+ refugees and asylum seekers from Ukraine to Uganda, to show that behind the statistics are real people. Their stories are ones of suffering, but they also show the extraordinary resilience of queer communities all across the globe.

We’re asking you, our readers and the wider PinkNews community to dig deep. Donations raised will help to provide LGBTQ+ refugees with the vital food, water, transportation, shelter and medication they need – from hormone treatment to HIV medicines.

Your generosity will benefit two charities. First, through GiveOut, we will be directly donating to OutRight Action International's LGBTIQ Ukraine Emergency Fund, helping the activists and organisations on the ground in Ukraine and surrounding countries to support the needs of LGBTQ+ people turning to them for life-saving help.

And our second beneficiary, Micro Rainbow, creates safe homes where LGBTQ+ asylum seekers from Ukraine, Afghanistan and beyond can be safe while they endure the UK's gruelling asylum process. Operating in London, the Midlands and the North West, Micro Rainbow provides safe temporary housing, food, bedding, clothing and the extra support needed by queer people who are desperately seeking refuge.

Even if Vladimir Putin's unjust war ends tomorrow, the need of LGBTQ+ refugees in Ukraine and around the world will continue for months and years to come. Every donation made, no matter how small, will make an immeasurable difference in the lives of our LGBTQ+ siblings affected by not only the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine but around the world. Please join us today by donating, sharing this fundraiser with everyone you know, and saying proudly: LGBTQ+ refugees are welcome.

Funds raised on this fundraiser will be managed by GoFundMe.Org.Uk, a charitable incorporated organisation registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales with registered charity no. 1192829. Donors support the GoFundMe.Org.UK fund, and GoFundMe.Org.UK selects and then distributes donations to organisations that help those affected. Your donation is eligible for Gift Aid.