32 recommendations to the European Commission on the new EU LGBTI+ Equality Strategy

Our overriding concern is that the EU LGBTI+ Equality Strategy should acknowledge the need to prioritise and protect the rights and needs of LGBTI+ asylum claimants and refugees. SOGICA (Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Claims of Asylum: A European Human Rights Challenge) is a four-year (2016-2020) research project funded by the European Research Council (ERC) that explores the social and legal experiences of individuals across Europe claiming international protection on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity (SOGI). It is led by Professor Nuno Ferreira and a team of researchers at the University of Sussex who are Dr Carmelo Danisi, Dr Moira Dustin and Dr Nina Held. Our research addresses the experiences and needs of those LGBTI+ people who are discriminated and persecuted and claim international protection in EU Member States. Our feedback relates to how we can ensure that these asylum claimants and refugees are treated in a fairer and more appropriate way. Please find attached full feedback.