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“The basic idea of welcoming immigrants to our shores is central to our way of life — it is in our DNA. We believe our diversity, our differences, when joined together by a common set of ideals, makes us stronger, makes us more creative, makes us different. From all these different strands, we make something new here in America.”¹

—President Barack Obama, July 4, 2014

For decades, the United States has placed obstacles in the path of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) immigrants seeking the American dream. The law used to explicitly bar LGBTQ people from entering the country, as immigration officials were allowed to simply refuse entry to people they perceived as being LGBTQ.² Then, the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 added “sexual deviation” to grounds for denying immigrants entry, which prevented LGBTQ people from entering the country for the next 25 years until Congress passed the Immigration Act of 1990.³ That same year, the Board of Immigration Appeals maintained that a gay Cuban man was eligible for withholding of removal because of persecution he faced as a result of his membership in a particular social group: “homosexuals.”⁴ In 1994, this case was declared precedent, making a legally binding determination that people with a well-founded fear of persecution on the basis of their sexual orientation could be eligible for asylum.⁵ It was not until 2010 that the United States lifted the ban that prevented people living with HIV from entering the country. And married same-sex couples were prohibited from accessing the same immigration benefits as other couples until 2013, when the Supreme Court found Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional.⁶

UCLA’s Williams Institute estimates that there are nearly 1 million adult immigrants in the United States that self-identify as LGBTQ; 267,000 are unauthorized and 637,000 are among the adult documented immigrant population.⁷ In a survey of young people with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)—temporary relief from deportation and work authorization for eligible immigrants—10 percent identified as LGBT.⁸ However, beyond these estimates, not much is known about LGBTQ immigrants in the United States. The U.S. government does not track sexual orientation and gender identity in its immigration programs nor does it do so in the U.S. Census, making data on this population scarce.

Today, rather than facilitating integration, the Trump administration’s policies are forcing immigrant communities into the shadows. In a country where nearly 1 in 10 U.S. citizen children are living in a household with at least one unauthorized family member,⁹ President Donald Trump’s mass deportation agenda creates a hostile and fearful environment for immigrants.¹⁰ In addition to the threat of deportation, LGBTQ immigrants face high rates of violence. LGBTQ unauthorized immigrants account for 17 percent of anti-LGBTQ hate violence survivors.¹¹ Furthermore, according to the U.S. Transgender Survey conducted by the National Center for Transgender Equality, nearly 1 in 4 transgender unauthorized immigrants reported being physically attacked in the past year.¹² One explanation for these high rates of violence is the compounded discrimination that LGBTQ unauthorized immigrants face living at the intersection of two marginalized communities.¹³

In the next 20 years, the Center for American Progress projects that immigrants and their children will account for 85 percent of net growth in the U.S. workforce.¹⁴ Given the increased role that new arrivals and their families will play in the United States economy, it is critical that the country works to expand outreach and services to improve immigrant integration. Research shows that immigrants are incredibly successful at assimilating into American life. CAP projects that, by 2030, the percentage of immigrants speaking English well or very well will rise from 57.5 percent to 70.3 percent.¹⁵ Another indicator of successful integration is economic stability. By 2030, the percent of immigrants living in poverty is projected to fall from 22.8 percent to 13.4 percent.¹⁶

These successful integration outcomes can be further improved by removing certain obstacles that stand in the path of immigrants, such as impediments to employment, and by implementing programs that help to ensure that basic living standards are met and that immigrants have access to English language learning opportunities. For LGBTQ immigrants who face discrimination on the basis of their sexual orientation and gender identity as well as their immigration status, it is particularly important that the nation works to remove these barriers to integration.¹⁷

Integration is a two-way street, and building welcoming communities to facilitate integration is a key component to its success. Therefore, in order to ensure that LGBTQ immigrants thrive, it is critical to invest in culturally competent immigrant integration resources that are responsive to the needs of diverse communities, enabling them to fully participate and contribute to American society.

This report documents services that are currently available to assist LGBTQ immigrants and facilitate their integration in six major U.S. cities: Chicago, New York, Miami, Houston, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C. The report focuses on these cities in particular because more than half of the foreign-born population in the United States resides in the states of California, New York, Texas, and Florida. Furthermore, the counties surrounding the focus cities account for 20 percent of the U.S. foreign-born population,¹⁸ and these cities rank among the top 20 in the country in terms of the proportion of LGBT adults living within their metropolitan areas.¹⁹

Through individual interviews and analysis of quantitative survey data, this report examines what social and legal services are available in the six selected cities; the approaches taken by service providers in working with LGBTQ immigrants; and the barriers LGBTQ immigrants face in accessing these services. In response to the research’s findings, the report offers recommendations to aid organizations and communities in their efforts to integrate LGBTQ immigrants in ways that meet their needs and allow them to thrive.

The organizations examined for this report—32 in all—provided a variety of services to LGBTQ immigrants. For example, some organizations responded to very basic needs such as providing food assistance by either facilitating the purchase of food through individual cash donations or through the distribution of food secured from food pantries; others provided cards for public transportation assistance. The services provided were geared toward LGBTQ asylum seekers who, like all asylum seekers, are not permitted to work for six months after applying for asylum and are not eligible for public benefits such as nutrition assistance until they win their case and are granted asylum.²⁰ (see Methodology for further specifics about analysis)

The services that were most frequently provided by the organizations interviewed for this report generally fell into the following categories: legal, health, employment, housing, language access, and education. This section provides a detailed analysis of the scope of each of these service areas.

Legal services

Research demonstrates that, whether they are seeking asylum or involved in other sorts of legal action, immigrants represented by legal counsel are more likely to win their cases in court. In fact, they are nearly six times more likely to prevail in court than immigrants lacking representation.²¹ Twenty of the organizations interviewed for this report provided legal services. Available legal services varied from direct representation of clients to pro bono attorney referrals to workshops that informed people of their rights.

The organizations interviewed in this report offered a variety of immigration-related legal services, including DACA and naturalization applications, family-based immigration, U visas for victims of certain crimes, detention representation, and work permit renewals. One organization based in Los Angeles managed a day laborer center through which it identified clients who could be eligible for relief from deportation.

A common trend among organizations providing legal services was the use of referrals to increase the impact and reach of limited resources. For instance, one organization handled around 100 cases in house while another 400 cases were handled by pro bono attorneys at various law firms. Another organization had a roster of 2,000 active pro bono attorneys who were available for case referrals. Most of the organizations—even those solely focused on immigration legal assistance—lacked a sufficient number of staff attorneys to meet their clients’ legal service needs, making referral networks critical. Since asylum applications are resource-intensive and can take years to complete, organizations that provided asylum representation did so by combining support from their own attorneys with referrals to outside pro bono counsel. Still, according to the organizations interviewed, even with referrals, there are simply not enough attorneys to meet the demand.

LGBTQ immigrants require immigration assistance as well as access to counsel more broadly in order to protect themselves against discrimination and bias in the areas of housing, employment, and family recognition.²² For example, one Miami organization relayed the story of an unauthorized transgender woman who was told by a landlord to pay three months’ rent up front in order to secure an apartment. She paid the money, but it turned out that there was no rentable apartment and, as a result, she became homeless. In this case, the organization connected her with an attorney to assist her in getting back her money.

A number of the organizations interviewed also offered workshops to help immigrants understand their rights and to provide information on how to file their own cases—not only with regards to immigration issues but also other legal matters as well. For example, if they are unaware of their rights under U.S. labor laws, LGBTQ immigrants may face legal barriers to employment or may be vulnerable to exploitation. With this in mind, as part of their programming, several organizations offered information and training about LGBTQ immigrants’ rights as employees.

Organizations that are solely legal service providers offer a greater variety of legal services than organizations that provide a broader range of services, such as housing, health care, and employment. However, the organizations interviewed in this report suggested that despite their specific set of offerings, all services were set up to ensure connectivity across organization type. Organizations that provided a more comprehensive set of services typically offered one type of legal service; conducted client screenings and made referrals to legal service organizations and individual lawyers; or hosted legal orientation presentations that were conducted by attorneys. Meanwhile, some organizations that only provided legal services also acted as a gateway to other services, for example, providing referrals to medical or employment assistance programs.

Some of the organizations adjusted their service offerings over time in response to changes in the law and in eligibility for immigration relief. For example, after the Supreme Court struck down Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act as unconstitutional, one organization started doing LGBTQ family-based immigration work. Prior to the high court ruling, same-sex married couples were ineligible for immigration benefits.²³ In another case, after Nepal was granted temporary protected status (TPS) in 2015, an organization that focused on Asian immigrants provided assistance for individuals seeking TPS visas.²⁴ Many organizations have helped with DACA applications as well as Deferred Action for Parents of Americans (DAPA) applications before the program was enjoined in February 2015.²⁵

When asked about barriers to service, the organizations participating in the interviews reported that the lack of pro bono or affordable attorneys providing litigation services for immigrants is a major barrier to meeting community needs. As one provider noted, “The ratio of immigration legal provider to immigrant is a disaster in LA.”

Organizations included in this report also lacked adequate funding to pay full-time lawyers to assist clients with asylum cases. To overcome this barrier, in addition to referrals to pro bono lawyers, organizations provided workshops with attorneys to conduct initial screenings and inform clients of the law so that they could handle their own cases. Beyond the lack of attorneys, the large fees associated with filing applications for immigration benefits—even if an organization could deliver free assistance with the application itself—was identified as another barrier preventing people from applying for those benefits.

Health services

Discrimination and legal barriers make accessing health care a challenge for LGBTQ immigrants. In a 2010 study by Lambda Legal on the health care experiences of LGBTQ individuals, more than half of respondents reported experiencing discrimination in these settings.²⁶ In the same study, 10 percent of lesbian, gay, and bisexual respondents and 25 percent of transgender respondents reported being refused care outright.²⁷ In terms of ability to access and afford health care, LGBTQ people are more than twice as likely to be uninsured than non-LGBTQ people.²⁸ The problem is even more acute for LGBTQ immigrants, as many immigrants are barred from accessing Medicaid and even from purchasing insurance in state exchanges.²⁹

Twelve of the organizations interviewed for this report provided health care services, with the most common service provided being HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment. The range of health care services offered by these 12 organizations included mental health care; treatment for substance and drug abuse; medical care; health education; and prevention and testing for HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections. Some organizations primarily provided health care services on-site while others served as entry points to health care services, either as a secondary service or through referrals to health care providers external to the organization.

Mental health care

Some organizations provide in-house one-on-one, couples, family, and group therapy with trained psychologists; others refer clients to mental health providers. During interviews, a few participants indicated that they understand the particular challenges faced by LGBTQ immigrants in relation to their mental health and seek to ensure that their services are responsive to these challenges. Some of the particular challenges listed by these participants included trauma, substance and drug abuse, domestic violence, sexual abuse, hate crimes, coming out, and being transgender.³⁰

Medical care

Although some organizations provided in-house medical care, referrals to medical clinics were more common. Among those that provided medical care in-house, a few offered a wide range of services. One health care provider agency, which focused on serving the Latinx population in Washington, D.C., provided chronic disease management as well as screenings for diseases such as cancer and diabetes. It also provided preventative health care, including health education on healthy eating and active lifestyle. Another Washington-based LGBTQ health care provider provided medical and dental care. Most organizations that mentioned specific types of medical services noted that they provided health care that was targeted more specifically at the LGBTQ community, such as hormone treatments or referrals for transgender clients.

Many of the organizations provided HIV testing and prevention services. Five provided in-house HIV treatment, testing, and prevention services; four others provided referral networks to ensure HIV positive clients are connected to care. While most of the organizations featured in this report provided health care that tended to be geared toward the LGBTQ community in general, some organizations had also taken steps to ensure that their services were available to the entire immigrant community. These organizations also provided immigrants with an entry point to other nonmedical services. For example, the aforementioned LGBTQ health provider in Washington helped immigrants navigate their health insurance and health care options with whatever status they had—even if they were unauthorized. One LGBTQ community organization in Houston even made a specific accommodation by amending its policies so that interpreters could join clients in therapy sessions, thereby ensuring that its mental health services were accessible to immigrants with limited English language proficiency.

Employment services

Unfamiliarity with the U.S. job market, paired with employers’ lack of cultural competency and legal barriers, can make it difficult for LGBTQ immigrants to find employment. Although the organizations interviewed in this report indicated that the need for employment assistance is rarely the first point of entry at community-based social service organizations, it is often a concern for clients as they consider paths to self-sufficiency. In order to meet this need, nine of the organizations provided job readiness and placement services to help their clients secure a steady source of income. These nine agencies provided employment-related trainings, which can be separated into two categories: one, developing or refining skills needed to find a job, and two, developing or refining those skills needed to perform the duties of that job.

Newly arriving LGBTQ immigrants may not know where to begin a job search and may need assistance seeking and securing employment. One of the organizations that was interviewed had a program with the stated goal of teaching LGBTQ immigrants “…the employment landscape of the United States.” This organization helped clients complete online job applications and provided workshops on preparing for job interviews. Moreover, for many LGBTQ immigrants, the hiring practices—or even just the resume format—used in their home country may be vastly different from those of the United States, so these programs are key to helping them navigate an unfamiliar job market.

Eight of the organizations helped clients with job placement, working to identify LGBTQ-friendly workplaces so that their clients could work in safe and affirming environments. One LGBTQ organization worked with the Office of Latino Affairs of the District of Columbia to host a 2015 job fair for LGBTQ-affirming employers. Events such as the LGBTQ-centric job fair help LGBTQ immigrants connect with employers who are familiar with nondiscrimination rules and have taken steps to create more inclusive work environments. At another organization, referrals for LGBTQ-affirming employers came directly from members of the organization’s membership network. For example, if a transgender Latina member had a vacancy at her restaurant, she might inform the coalition, who would then announce the vacancy to the network. The coalition could facilitate the introduction to the restaurant and specify the applicant’s gender identity. In this way, social networks and referrals can help LGBTQ immigrants identify culturally competent employers.

Organizations also provided job readiness programs that focused on developing employable skills. LGBTQ immigrants may not have the necessary demonstrable qualifications for some jobs, as their credentials do not always transfer to the United States. In these situations, clients may need to find ways to transfer educational or other qualifications from their home country, or they may require assistance enrolling in a GED program. And while some LGBTQ immigrants are comfortable using smartphones and apps, a number of organizations reported the need to teach basic computer skills, such as word processing and spreadsheet software. At the time of the interview, one organization was in the process of securing a new, larger location that would provide space for a computer lab for its clients. The organization also indicated that the space could be used to teach skills such as cosmetology and tailoring.

One organization based in Miami used a provider model that brought on clients as interns and gave them the necessary training to eventually become successful staff members. To ensure that these interns had some source of income and could meet basic living expenses, the organization provided them with stipends. When the organization had grant funding that allowed them to hire, the interns were in position to step into staff roles. The organization described the program goal to “teach them [LGBTQ immigrants] how to become leaders of their own community, but also the skills that they would need to become part of corporate America.” Job readiness programs can help LGBTQ immigrants develop the technical skills necessary for finding meaningful employment; they can also provide opportunities for personal and career development that may otherwise be unavailable for a community affected by poverty and marginalization.

Two New York-based organizations used worker cooperatives as a pathway to economic empowerment. This model brought together a group of immigrant workers who collectively developed and executed a business plan that gave them control over their own wages and allowed them to set the terms of their contract directly with clients. One of the two organizations noted that cooperatives allow LGBTQ immigrants to earn an income through legal means while protecting them from exploitative employers. It gave the example of a group of transgender immigrants who recently decided that they wanted to work in the beauty industry. While the members of the group were making their own decisions about how to eventually run their beauty industry cooperative, the organization had committed to raise funds that would cover the costs of training courses and licensing fees; it had pledged to provide technical assistance once the business was up and running.

Housing services

Although there are not immigrant-specific data related to housing stability, research shows that LGBTQ people are disproportionately impacted by homelessness. It is estimated that 40 percent of all homeless youth identify as LGBT.³¹ Among adults, nearly 1 in 3 transgender people reported experiencing homelessness at some point in their lives.³² During interviews, several organizations and one government official commented on the lack of welcoming housing for LGBTQ immigrants. As one LGBTQ organization in Washington, D.C., noted, “We could probably use a lot more. If the city gave us a house tomorrow, we could fill it with asylum seekers. No problem.” Among the organizations interviewed, there was significant variation in the availability of housing. Only nine of the 32 organizations said that they provide housing assistance. Only one organization offered supportive housing specifically to LGBTQ immigrants—though they only served youth and young adults. Most of the housing available was limited to specific populations, such as those living with HIV/AIDS, young people, and seniors.

In order to meet housing needs, some respondents referred clients to LGBTQ-friendly housing programs or helped them to identify and apply for LGBTQ-friendly housing. Several organizations ran housing programs for specific subpopulations, which were available to LGBTQ immigrants based on their age or HIV status, as noted above. A number of organizations operated shelters or other transitional living programs for LGBTQ youth, or they connected youth clients to such programs in their community. These shelters typically had age requirements, only serving people under the age of 21 or 24. Despite these programs being in place, finding shelter can still be a challenge, even for LGBTQ immigrant youth. One organization based in Miami reported driving clients to Fort Lauderdale—nearly an hour away—due to the lack of youth housing in its service area. While most of the organizations with housing programs were not specific to immigrants, some of them offered legal support and other wraparound services to this population, ensuring that they received additional services beyond housing.

To address the shortage in available LGBTQ-friendly shelter, some organizations had partnered with local community members to offer host homes, often with hosts who were themselves LGBTQ. At some of the organizations, staff even opened up their own homes to LGBTQ immigrants. One organization in New York provided $300 a month in rent assistance to LGBTQ asylum seekers.

Language access

Over 25 million people in the United States have limited English proficiency (LEP).³³ 21 percent of the total LEP population lives in counties that include the cities of Los Angeles, Miami, Houston, Chicago, and New York City.³⁴ People with LEP are more likely to live in poverty, making access to basic services critical.³⁵ Yet without language access resources, it is difficult for these individuals to locate and use services. Twelve organizations interviewed for this report provided materials and services in multiple languages. Nearly 80 percent of the organizations that responded to the CAP survey reported that they provide materials to clients in more than one language, and half reported having signs in their offices that were in more than one language.

Language access varied depending on the representative size of ethnic groups in a given metropolitan area. Most organizations had at least a few Spanish-speaking staff members, and a few offered hotlines staffed by individuals who spoke multiple languages. The cities and counties with relatively large Asian and Pacific Islander (API) populations offered additional language access services beyond Spanish; howev