U.S. no longer a haven for gay, Mexican asylum seekers

Posted By Katie Hunter Wednesday, November 12, 2008 - 1:58 PM Share

Proposition 8's defeat in California isn't the only thing making headlines for the gay rights movement as of late. According to the Washington Post, gay Mexican citizens who seek asylum in the United States are facing an increasingly uphill battle. Changes to the general asylum policy and a few rejected cases have resulted in what many fear is the end of a practice that provided safety for dozens since the mid-1990s.

Persecution based on sexuality, in a country where machismo and conservative Catholic ideals run deep, once made a strong enough case for gay Mexicans seeking refuge up north. But liberalized laws on homosexuality and an increase in gay pride efforts have made the case a harder sell. Mexico City now recognizes civil unions, and the city's gay pride parade draws more than a million people each year.

So why should the United States leave open the possibility of asylum? Despite the gains, negative attitudes in Mexico about homosexuality persist, leading to workplace discrimination and brutality against gays. Between 1995 and 2006, more than 1,200 Mexicans were killed because of their sexual orientation. And for all the good they might have done for the country's gay rights movement, liberalized laws have provoked a backlash from homophobic parts of society -- including some members of the Mexican police force.

Another reason to leave the asylum option? Consider the impact these homophobic attitudes and actions have on the spread of HIV/AIDS. Men who have sex with men in Mexico are over 100 times more likely to contract HIV than the general population. Says Martin Martinez Sanchez, a Mexico City hospital employee, of gay men in the capital city:

They have sexual encounters in clandestine areas, and in parts of the city that are just horrible and dangerous... Later they go home and have unprotected sex with their wives. Many gays feel they have to have a wife for appearances."

For many, asylum might not just mean escaping discrimination -- it can mean a lifeline to better care. Mexico's routine medication shortages mean inconsistent treatment for the disease, which usually requires daily pill dosages. As long as prevention and treatment measures for AIDS lag, the United States ought to think twice before closing its doors.

EXPLORE:LATIN AMERICA, CULTURE, MIGRATION/IMMIGRATION

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TEODORO

5:05 PM ET

November 12, 2008

Asylum for Refugees

I understand the persecution angle for sexual orientation. Although it's not explicit in the government's definition of refugee, it can be reasonably interpreted:

who is unable or unwilling to return to, and is
unable or unwilling to avail himself or herself of the protection of, that country because of persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion...[8USC1101]

But please tell me you are not seriously advocating changing the definition of a refugee status to include the medically-underserved? If you are, I hope you realize how many billions of refugees you open this country up to, not to mention the trillions of liabilities on the medical system.
Even if we only focus on AIDS-medically-underserved, that's still 10s of millions and quite a different approach to any foreign assistance I've ever seen proposed. It would be far cheaper to throw the trillions you are making the government liable for at the global AIDS problem than to redefine refugee in this way.

KATIE HUNTER

9:46 AM ET

November 13, 2008

I certainly don't advocate

I certainly don't advocate opening borders for the sole reason of being medically underserved (since, as you said, there would be no way to accomodate the millions of people who'd arrive at U.S. borders). What I should have expanded on, however, is the point that the lack of education about HIV/AIDS--especially among many medical professionals in Mexico--is part and parcel of the potentially fatal stigma and discrimination that many gays there face. Lack of education lends to lack of prevention efforts, which can prove devastating for persons living with AIDS, especially when coupled with Mexico's lack of consistent medication (which, when available, cost four times as much as in countries of similar income levels). Again, being medically underserved shouldn't be the sole reason one is granted asylum, but it could--and I think should--be taken into account as part of these individuals' overall cases. Unfortunately, the U.S. government seems inclined to overlook this factor when it denies refuge to gay Mexicans on the basis of supposed "leaps and bounds" of progress the country has recently made for gay rights.

TREVOSHEA

1:03 PM ET

November 13, 2008

It is indeed a sad fact that

It is indeed a sad fact that homosexuality and AIDS are often connected to each other. Even in the United States or Canada, you will often hear half-serious jokes about contracting AIDS through male-on-male sex. These jokes rarely involve male and female pairings.

In any case, outdated attitudes towards AIDS are just another thing making life more dangerous for homosexuals in Mexico.

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