Colours of Cape Town 2017
Donation protected
PASSOP (People Against Suffering Oppression and Poverty) is an advocacy and non-profit organisaiton dedicated to the rights and needs of immigrants, asylum seekers and refugees in South Africa - particularly those who identify as LGBTI+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer).
From Victor Chikalogwe (Malawi), Danny Hankes (United States of America), and Marie Lunau (Denmark), we would like to extend you an invitation: Please help us in our fundraising event, Colours of Cape Town. 100% of funds will go to PASSOP's LGBTI Advocacy Program. The aim is to raise funds for the LGBTI+ refugee community, whilst promoting tolerance and the integration of LGBTI refugees into the larger LGBTI+ community here in Cape Town.
The fundraising manager, who will be handling the funds and transactions for this campaign, is:
1. Daniel J. Hankes;
2. From Williamsburg, Virginia, United States of America;
3. In his capacity as a Legal and LGBTI Program intern, Winter of 2017, for People Against Suffering, Oppression, and Poverty;
4. Using a secured bank account transfer transaction to send the funds to Victor Chikalogwe, the LGBTI Program Director and PASSOP Coordinator from 2016;
5. For the programs and initiatives listed in bullet point form at the bottom of this description.
Homophobia is a serious issue all across Africa, causing many LGBTI+ refugees to flee from neighboring African countries to South Africa, the most progressive African country that grants refugee status on the basis of sexual orientation. However, despite South Africa’s official position, the asylum application process is fraught with problems and a lack of transparency, and many LGBTI+ refugees are being turned away unjustly. Moreover, those who are granted status still often face discrimination and harassment in their new communities in South Africa. When xenophobia is compounded with homophobia, it leaves many LGBTI+ immigrants in conditions not unlike those in the countries they fled in the first place.
PASSOP takes an intersectional, Pan-African approach to endorsing the constitutional protection of those displaced by their homophobia and persecution in their home countries. Discriminatory laws in countries such as Malawi, Zimbabwe, Somalia, and Uganda (as well as non-African countries such as Syria and Russia) drive LGBTI+ individuals to seek refuge in progressive countries like South Africa. Institutionalised homophobia and transphobia is still rampant worldwide, with at least 76 states preserving laws which criminalise consensual, same-sex relationships.
LGBTI+ people are targets of organised physical violence and psychological abuse by paramilitary groups, religious and nationalist extremists, as well as communities and even families. The UN reports that abuse and violence against LGBTI+ persons tend to be “especially vicious compared to other bias-motivated crimes.”
Furthermore, instances of violence and discrimination toward LGBTI+ often go undocumented out of distrust for police and fear of outwardly identifying their gender identity or sexual orientation.
Studies conducted in different countries around the globe demonstrate that LGBTI+ people have a consistently higher likelihood of experiencing poverty, food insecurity and joblessness. Between the years 2008 and 2014, over 1600 trans persons were killed - equating to one killing every other day. With these statistics in mind, it is difficult to justify shutting our doors to people facing such deplorable political environments in their own countries. South Africa’s asylum application process is opaque and inefficient at best - and when refugees are granted settling rights, they are not protected from discrimination, harassment and lack of access to housing, education and healthcare.
Our LGBTI+ program works tirelessly to provide support and advocacy. The funds from this fundraising event will go to the program's principal objectives, including:
▪ Establish and maintain temporary housing and accommodation for the most vulnerable of LGBTI+ refugees;
▪ Assist with securing safe, stable employment and job skill development;
▪ Assist LGBTI+ refugees and asylum-seekers from other African countries coming to South Africa with legal and paralegal advice regarding documentation and labour issues;
▪ Raise awareness around the plight of LGBTI+ refugees and asylum-seekers in South Africa;
▪ Monitor the South African government’s performance in the asylum-seeker and refugee determination processes to ensure that it is true to its commitment to sexual refugees;
▪ Hold community workshops and integration events
aimed at helping LGBTI+ refugees to integrate into
their communities;
▪ Build up a solidarity network to unite LGBTI+ refugees, asylum-seekers and immigrants and provide them with outlets for emotional support and counseling;
▪ Promote understanding and tolerance within refugees' communities in partnership with other LGBTI+ organisations, in order to ensure their safety and successful integration.
From Victor Chikalogwe (Malawi), Danny Hankes (United States of America), and Marie Lunau (Denmark), we would like to extend you an invitation: Please help us in our fundraising event, Colours of Cape Town. 100% of funds will go to PASSOP's LGBTI Advocacy Program. The aim is to raise funds for the LGBTI+ refugee community, whilst promoting tolerance and the integration of LGBTI refugees into the larger LGBTI+ community here in Cape Town.
The fundraising manager, who will be handling the funds and transactions for this campaign, is:
1. Daniel J. Hankes;
2. From Williamsburg, Virginia, United States of America;
3. In his capacity as a Legal and LGBTI Program intern, Winter of 2017, for People Against Suffering, Oppression, and Poverty;
4. Using a secured bank account transfer transaction to send the funds to Victor Chikalogwe, the LGBTI Program Director and PASSOP Coordinator from 2016;
5. For the programs and initiatives listed in bullet point form at the bottom of this description.
Homophobia is a serious issue all across Africa, causing many LGBTI+ refugees to flee from neighboring African countries to South Africa, the most progressive African country that grants refugee status on the basis of sexual orientation. However, despite South Africa’s official position, the asylum application process is fraught with problems and a lack of transparency, and many LGBTI+ refugees are being turned away unjustly. Moreover, those who are granted status still often face discrimination and harassment in their new communities in South Africa. When xenophobia is compounded with homophobia, it leaves many LGBTI+ immigrants in conditions not unlike those in the countries they fled in the first place.
PASSOP takes an intersectional, Pan-African approach to endorsing the constitutional protection of those displaced by their homophobia and persecution in their home countries. Discriminatory laws in countries such as Malawi, Zimbabwe, Somalia, and Uganda (as well as non-African countries such as Syria and Russia) drive LGBTI+ individuals to seek refuge in progressive countries like South Africa. Institutionalised homophobia and transphobia is still rampant worldwide, with at least 76 states preserving laws which criminalise consensual, same-sex relationships.
LGBTI+ people are targets of organised physical violence and psychological abuse by paramilitary groups, religious and nationalist extremists, as well as communities and even families. The UN reports that abuse and violence against LGBTI+ persons tend to be “especially vicious compared to other bias-motivated crimes.”
Furthermore, instances of violence and discrimination toward LGBTI+ often go undocumented out of distrust for police and fear of outwardly identifying their gender identity or sexual orientation.
Studies conducted in different countries around the globe demonstrate that LGBTI+ people have a consistently higher likelihood of experiencing poverty, food insecurity and joblessness. Between the years 2008 and 2014, over 1600 trans persons were killed - equating to one killing every other day. With these statistics in mind, it is difficult to justify shutting our doors to people facing such deplorable political environments in their own countries. South Africa’s asylum application process is opaque and inefficient at best - and when refugees are granted settling rights, they are not protected from discrimination, harassment and lack of access to housing, education and healthcare.
Our LGBTI+ program works tirelessly to provide support and advocacy. The funds from this fundraising event will go to the program's principal objectives, including:
▪ Establish and maintain temporary housing and accommodation for the most vulnerable of LGBTI+ refugees;
▪ Assist with securing safe, stable employment and job skill development;
▪ Assist LGBTI+ refugees and asylum-seekers from other African countries coming to South Africa with legal and paralegal advice regarding documentation and labour issues;
▪ Raise awareness around the plight of LGBTI+ refugees and asylum-seekers in South Africa;
▪ Monitor the South African government’s performance in the asylum-seeker and refugee determination processes to ensure that it is true to its commitment to sexual refugees;
▪ Hold community workshops and integration events
aimed at helping LGBTI+ refugees to integrate into
their communities;
▪ Build up a solidarity network to unite LGBTI+ refugees, asylum-seekers and immigrants and provide them with outlets for emotional support and counseling;
▪ Promote understanding and tolerance within refugees' communities in partnership with other LGBTI+ organisations, in order to ensure their safety and successful integration.
Organizer
Danny Hankes
Organizer
Williamsburg, VA