The children of the rainbow at Kakuma Camp Refugee in Kenya

We realize that in the last ten years countless waves of migration have been advancing across the globe, many refugees trying to save their lives and restart their stories from scratch. However, as in our lives not everything is rosy, at least the majority of these people today find themselves in a situation of calamity and vulnerability due to numerous physical, social and other factors. Today we realize that with climate change, many disasters have intensified over the last few years, bringing disease, destruction, wars, conflicts, inequality and our dream of seeing a more harmonious and peaceful world is becoming increasingly distant. Talking about KAKUMA CAMP REFUGEE, one of the largest refugee camps in the world, is something quite delicate. KAKUMA is located in Kenya and is where large organizations focus on supporting countless people arriving from countries such as: Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Burundi, Somalia, South Sudan and in some cases even Ethiopia. There are countless cultures located in a single place, it is believed that new people arrive almost every day and the situation only gets worse instead of better.

Kenya is an extremely traditional country compared to some Western countries and this is a factor that needs to be taken seriously. Everything becomes more complicated when we talk about LGBTI+ people in this place that was supposed to be a safe and welcoming place, but it becomes hell in the lives of these people who are already tortured, attacked, mistreated and rejected from their homelands. It is clear that discrimination only amplifies in this place called KAKUMA when it comes to QUEER people, in fact if we stop to reflect on what a refugee camp actually is?

In practice, it is supposed to be a place where all these people gather and little by little they organize themselves and move forward depending on what these people need at that moment, more than 60 years have passed since the first United Nations decrees and discrimination in these places They are enough to scare anyone. Many, I believe can blame the most ignorant cultures, the nation's precarious system, lack of empathy.? I want to believe that there is a lack of willpower and courage to face this problem that only increases with each passing day.?

"UNHCR’s attempt to make it appear that the problem lies within the QUEER community itself constitutes an attack on our vulnerable community and is at odds with its fundamental duty to recognize and protect those who are most vulnerable. This is highly regrettable and constitutes a strong deviation from its mandate.” Informs one of the refugees from Kakuma Refugee Camp who did not want to identify himself”.

We see most of the time or even in the news large global organizations carrying out actions and welcoming these people, especially when we talk about the European continent, we even notice the speech of the great leader of the Catholic church with a tone of wanting something to be done about it. Rather, so that the situation does not worsen, but who are these people presented by the media?

In most campaigns, actions you notice that “heterosexual” people are privileged in some services when attending refuge camps or even those who decide to take refuge in an extremely dangerous way, whether by land, sea or air. Personally, I only see large organizations talk about QUEER refugees when something matters to them. I don't want to judge any attitude, but the lack of support for QUEER refugees is noticeable.

More than 70 countries in the 21st century criminalize or punish people who have relationships with people of the same sex, the penalties are numerous, such as: stoning , death penalty, life imprisonment among other absurd calamities. What has changed in the last 60 years since the first treaty after World War II?

The blood of QUEER people is being spilled on the ground right this minute and what can we do to reduce and turn these realities into something positive instead of negative?

I believe that being aware that these people are human beings like me, like you, is one of the first steps to finding new ways of acting. Pretending that this problem does not exist is a serious mistake and a crime against the people who gave their lives to make this world called “EARTH” a place for everyone. The “TRANS” refugee community is one of the most massacred communities in this place they call “KAKUMA”. The attacks are constant, homophobia prevails and these people who are so marginalized by their societies and cultures enter into despair with almost no return. We all understand that the difficulties will be immense, but it is like this everywhere in the world, how can someone say that they defend human rights and ignore the calls for help from QUEER refugees?

What is needed for this mechanism to work? There is no logic in understand that large organizations do not speak out to give a little respect and dignity to these forgotten communities, they are not invisible, LGBTI+ people have existed since the “ancient world” this is not a disease and the entire scientific community has proven it over the ages.

“My name is MASAGAZI ERIC, from Uganda, asylum seeker living in Kakuma Refugee Camp, Kenya, ERIC says that a refugee has the right to safe asylum and freedom of thought, movement and freedom from torture and degrading treatment, according to the United Nations. And according to article 5 of the universal declaration of human rights, “No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. We, the LGBTQIA+ refugees in Kakuma, have long lived outside the scope of these fundamental human rights.”

The great nations with great economic powers and freedom of thought, where it is said that democracy is a weapon for ignorance, seem to close their eyes when we talk about this problem, no one wants to say that they were wrong in choosing a path that did not give results, but we are dealing with of human lives. This people who are in a constant state of vulnerability, with their mental health affected, with no hope and no expectation that one day their life will improve, the problem is real, we cannot distinguish who comes first or who comes second or leave the third for tomorrow , these people need reception now, integration, opportunities, health and education, which are the pillars of the United Nations.

“In the donations made by supporters, they provide us with food so we don’t sleep on an empty stomach. This is because we receive around 4 kilos of sorghum to take each person for one month from the World Food Programme. When we go to camp hospitals, we are not treated like others. We are discriminated against and we have to end up going to private hospitals to receive adequate treatment according to our sexuality even though we know that these people most of the time do not know how to treat a QUEER person.” Report ERIC queer refugee at Kakuma Camp Refugee.

“Based on the vision promoted by these global organizations, some of which appeared alongside UNHCR as they spoke to the press, they created the totally opposite narrative of what it really is, thus analyzing that it is the fault of LGBTI+ refugees because we cannot hide who we are indeed. This narrative also implies that QUEER refugees are simply looking for resettlement in the third country. According to UNHCR and its agents, it is unreasonable that the persecuted and “dying” refugees in Kakuma refugee camp want a safe environment outside of Kenya and that the horrors we face daily are ok. This is a homophobic and transphobic attack against us by the very institution that intends to protect us from the same.” Report ERIC queer refugee at Kakuma Camp Refugee.

It is clear that there is a very strong problem internally in the view of these large global organizations when we talk about assistance to LGBTI+ refugees. We believe that not all people trained by these companies can really do a job adapting to a community that has a reality that is totally different from what they think. We know that cultural factors are very intense and this is a factor that we cannot ignore. Working with humanitarian issues are extremely delicate by numbers, you need to be open-hearted to listen, to understand the situation, to plan and execute rapid action with significant effect.

“We are disappointed by the casual approach and negligence that UNHCR and its partners continue to demonstrate in the way they responded to the attacks on LGBTQIA+ refugees in Kakuma refugee camp, which claimed lives and left many with serious physical and psychological injuries. We read with great shock your inaccurate statements claiming that Kakuma is now hospitable to LGBTQIA+ people and that most of us live in relative safety. We can confirm that this is not true and that, as a whole, the LGBTQIA+ group in Kakuma continues to face attacks, regardless of which part of Kakuma we live in. Children, women and others in the LGBTQIA+ community continue to face unprovoked attacks, harassment and severe discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.” Report ERIC queer refugee at Kakuma Camp Refugee.

According to the reports discussed, we realize how frustrating this negative and mentally and physically draining routine is for these people, these people can barely sleep or eat properly, no matter which side is strong in the refugee camp, this place is not the “salvation” as it is actually promised in the media, this place is a precarious, insecure, violent place and the only law that works is that whoever is strongest survives, whoever is weak is left behind. We can create countless projects, actions, but you need courage, you need to make things happen in this place, just talking, interviewing, or writing articles won't change much, your voice is your greatest weapon to change the world's ignorance, all you need is you know how to use it appropriately and fairly.

QUEER people in the KAKUMA refugee camp strongly need your support, they need the human rights decree to be actually validated in the place where they live.

We believe that it is an obligation for the largest nations in the world to invest in humanitarian sectors, safely and freely promoting diversity and inclusion. There is a lack of support, a lack of humanity and a lack of courage to change the lives of these people who are human beings like you and me. We know that the march for respect and equal rights is far from over, but we need to try, LGBTI+ refugees have dreams, they have desires, they want to study, they want to live their lives, they want to find their true love this is as normal.? We know that the sun shines for everyone in whatever circumstance you are in, empathy, courage and faith do have the power to change the world. Don't allow more lives to be taken out of pure ignorance, support the children of the rainbow, they need your help now!?