US deportations send LGBT asylum seekers to African nations with anti-gay laws
U.S. deportations under the Trump administration have placed LGBT asylum seekers in African countries where same-sex relations are criminalized or hostile.
A report has identified 40 instances of LGBT migrants who received legal protection in the United States but were later deported to third countries that either criminalize same‑sex activity or are hostile toward LGBT people, including Sierra Leone, Cameroon, Eswatini, the Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The policy, intensified during Donald Trump's second term, has led to over 40,000 third-country removals, about 900 of them to African states.
Abdou Latifou, who fled violence in Togo after a mob attack, was granted safety by a U.S. judge but was flown to Sierra Leone, held under police surveillance, and subsequently forced back to Togo before escaping to Ivory Coast. Critics such as former immigration official Claire Trickler-McNulty and the NGO Immigration Equality argue the practice mocks asylum protections, whereas ICE and DHS maintain it is essential for public safety. A federal judge’s attempt to block the policy was stayed by the Supreme Court, allowing the deportations to proceed pending a December hearing.
Why it matters
The story reveals how U.S. immigration actions can expose vulnerable LGBT refugees to persecution in hostile foreign nations.
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