Hi, I'm Adrian, a student in Glasgow, and I'm raising funds for Lorelai's transition, as she is a friend of mine. She is a trans woman (she/they) from India and an asylum seeker living in Glasgow. She left India to gain some freedom in Glasgow, away from her transphobic parents who pose a significant threat to her life and would have made it impossible for her to live her life as a trans woman. Charlotte (who is named as the beneficiary) is a friend of Lorelai's who's administrating the account that receives the donations to protect Lorelai's own privacy.

Lorelai came to Glasgow to pursue her studies and she has been able to find a sense of community, which allowed her to finally live as herself. She decided to apply for asylum in the UK to escape her transphobic parents and transphobic society in India permanently.

In May 2022, the Home Office revoked Lorelai’s right to work after her screening interview, which led us to create the Help Lorelai Survive in Glasgow (https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-lorelai-stay-in-glasgow-longterm) fundraiser, because she would not be able to get back her right to work until May 2023. She exceeded the target of £8,000 on the previous fundraiser in early 2023 and we would like to extend our gratitude towards everyone who amplified and donated to the fundraiser.

This money has allowed her to move into a new flat from university accommodation and also pay for basic necessities as well as unexpected legal costs.

In September 2022, Lorelai had her substantial interview with the Home Office, which led them to deny her claim for asylum in December 2022, claiming that the Indian government could still help her and/or she could move somewhere else. This decision led to Lorelai losing access to free legal aid, which meant that she suddenly faced legal fees amounting to £3,500 in the pursuit of appealing against the Home Office’s decision.

While navigating the costs of basic survival and extended legal challenges, Lorelai has been unable to begin her transition. Therefore, this fundraiser will provide her with the funds to begin and maintain her transition in these continually challenging times. While she has self-referred to the Sandyford Gender Identity Clinic in Glasgow, their current waiting list is 4+ years long and makes relying on the NHS for transitioning practically impossible. If you know anything about the state of trans healthcare in the UK you will know that these issues of years-long waiting lists are increasingly common, including in Scotland, and directly put trans people at risk. Through this GoFundMe Lorelai, aims to cover the cost of hormones, blood tests and costs of hair removal (essentially laser plus electrolysis). Thereby, the aim of this GoFundMe is to aid in Lorelai's transition until she gets her asylum granted, right to work returned and has a job where she's able to pay for the costs of hormones!