A recent pilot study conducted by Dr. Laura Harvey for the asylum advocacy group Rainbow Migration has shed light on the prevalence of homophobic abuse and violence in the UK’s immigration detention system. The study found that of the five participants interviewed, three reported verbal homophobic bullying and two reported attempted physical attacks from others in the immigration detention system. Thousands of individuals are held in UK detention centers each year as the Home Office resolves their immigration status, but Rainbow Migration claims that little is being done to protect the most vulnerable.
Despite the government’s Adults at Risk in Immigration Detention policy recognizing the vulnerability of trans and intersex individuals and avoiding their detention, gay, lesbian, bisexual, and non-binary people are not included. The study’s participants reported mixed experiences with staff in the immigration detention centers, with some having positive interactions and others facing verbal abuse and misgendering.
Dr. Harvey, the researcher behind the study, says that the findings prove once again that detention centers are not safe for LGBTQ+ individuals. Executive Director of Rainbow Migration, Leila Zadeh, adds that the findings are “disheartening” but unsurprising and that the government needs to take immediate action to end the detention of all LGBTQ+ individuals or, at the very least, put a time limit on detention. A spokesperson from the Home Office said that the welfare of individuals in immigration detention is taken seriously, but that immigration detention makes a limited but essential contribution to tackling illegal migration and protecting the public.