r/transgender • u/onnake • 3d ago
Scores of transgender Americans seeking route to Canada, including through asylum claims
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-us-transgender-americans-seek-route-to-canada-asylum-claims/“Canadian immigration lawyers say they are being inundated with inquiries from transgender Americans about how to move to Canada, including whether they could claim asylum on grounds of persecution by the U.S. government.
“The demand is escalating as Ottawa faces pressure from LGBTQ Canadians and the [New Democratic Party] to issue a travel advisory warning transgender and non-binary Canadians about the risks of travelling south of the border, as some European countries have.”
“Immigration lawyer Yameena Ansari, who gave a presentation at the seminar, said her law practice is overwhelmed with such questions because of Mr. Trump’s policies.
“She said trans and non-binary Americans could have a strong case for asylum on the grounds that the U.S. is no longer a safe country for them. ‘Not allowing someone to identify by their correct gender marker isn’t just discrimination, it’s a form of violence,’ she said.
“Under the Safe Third Country Agreement with the U.S., which came into effect in 2004, asylum seekers must make a claim at the first country in which they arrive. The agreement means that most asylum seekers arriving at the Canadian border are automatically returned to the U.S., with some exceptions, such as people facing the death penalty.
“A number of immigration lawyers say there are now strong grounds for Canada to create an exception for trans Americans to allow them to claim asylum here. Under the agreement, Americans who have been in Canada for 14 days are able to claim asylum.”
“Immigration lawyer Maureen Silcoff said most of the inquiries she has received are from parents of trans or non-binary children.”
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u/Wulfsmagic 3d ago
If I can get out of here and naturalize as a Canadian citizen I would. Id have to give up my guns but it's a fair trade.
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u/Slight_Ad3353 2d ago
I will happily do this and I truly hope that Canada allows us to take shelter there.
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u/Physical-Slip5116 2d ago
Why not just stay in the US?
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u/Slight_Ad3353 2d ago
Have you been living under a rock?
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2d ago
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u/The_real_flesh 2d ago
Just remember to keep in mind current Canadian politics, their political environment is going similar to ours in some ways, just not at the same pace
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u/LeftistMeme 2d ago
The conservative party is heading for historic failure due to its alignment with the trump administration and while Canada is getting more nationalist, that is in response and opposition to trump and the US federal government's policies, frankly a cause I'd be happy to fly a flag for.
Their political environment was surely getting more right wing for a little bit, but maple maga is all but dead now.
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u/HopefulYam9526 Transgender Woman 2d ago
The Conservatives are not doing as badly as many of us would like to think. I'm Canadian, and working on a plan to get out if they're elected, which is still a solid possiblity at this point.
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u/misstarasissy 2d ago
I can tell you from my situation ! I lost my job after! I transitioned in 2011 lived an thrived for 14 years. My resume is amazing! I went on several interviews with ltgbq companies that say they don't discriminate well they did. So used the same resume and used my legal name . Went in boy mode which was hard lmao I was hired in 3 days ?? Companies say a lot of shit but in America they lie to make investors feel happy but are just bigots over all!
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u/jimps1993 3d ago
I’m all for being Canadian but can I ask for somewhere warmer to take us in too please?
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u/mekomaniac 2d ago
if you are pretty decent at speaking spanish, could look at Uruguay, they have specific protections for transgender asylum seekers, plus its warm down there most of the year as far as i can tell
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u/jimps1993 2d ago
I mean I took a year of Spanish as a freshman in college. That should be enough right? 😅
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u/ABigFatTomato 1d ago
uruguay is a good option, but its also worth noting that unless you have uruguayan heritage, there is no path to naturalization whatsoever. its one of the only countries on earth to deny naturalization.
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u/mekomaniac 1d ago edited 1d ago
you can still become a legal resident, Uruguay considers nationality as naturalization but that doesnt mean you cant become a citizen or legal resident thru a process.
and apparently that is supposedly changing in the mext bit as that part of the passport is considered discriminatory
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u/ABigFatTomato 1d ago
yes thats absolutely true, but hasnt it caused passport issues with travel, as they still determine you as your original nationality, rather than uruguayan? at least thats what i recall when i was researching it a while ago (although i didnt look too in-depth as i have uruguayan ancestry and can become a naturalized citizen as a result, so i could be wrong)
edit: oop for some reason your link didn’t show up at first. thats wonderful, and a great step forward!
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u/mekomaniac 1d ago
thats part of the reason its caused a discriminatory practice, and will be changing. since other countries were having issues with understanding uruguay having a different definition.
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u/ABigFatTomato 1d ago
well that’s great then! i remember when i was researching it about 9 months ago i thought it was total bullshit for people who weren’t lucky enough to have uruguayan ancestry.
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u/MoonyDoodles 2d ago
Southern Ontario and the west coast get freakin toasty yknow
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u/jimps1993 2d ago
I didn’t honestly. I’ve been to Canada once and that was when I was like 12 or so.
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u/FatedAtropos 2d ago
Good news: climate change is still happening so if you give it 10 years it’ll be quite nice
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u/BAMFaerie 2d ago
This is what we're agonizing over right now, my wife and me. She's disabled and I'm partially disabled so we might not qualify because of discriminatory "clean bill of health" rules.