20/06/2025 | Writer: Kaos GL
Today is World Refugee Day. Kaos GL Association’s Refugee Rights Program issued a statement, saying, “We will continue to advocate that refugee and LGBTI+ rights are inseparable.”
Today is June 20, World Refugee Day. First designated on the 50th anniversary of the United Nations’ signing of the Refugee Convention, Kaos GL Association’s Refugee Rights Program has released a statement in three languages: Turkish, Arabic, and Persian.
In its statement, the Program said:
“World Refugee Day on June 20 reminds us of the struggle for rights of those who are forced to live along the paths of migration due to war, oppression, poverty, and discrimination.
At Kaos GL, we know that being a refugee is, in itself, a difficult process. However, for LGBTI+ refugees, this process becomes even more severe with systematic discrimination, exclusion, exposure to violence, and the denial of all this violence.
In the current context of economic crisis, LGBTI+ refugees are among the most insecure and poorest groups; they are condemned to both social exclusion and structural poverty.
The declaration of 2025 as the 'Year of the Family' is the societal reflection of the systematic targeting of LGBTI+ people as if they were a disease threatening the family/society, resulting in increasing hate attacks day by day.
Today, once again, we repeat:
Borders do not stop life, and LGBTI+ hostility cannot overshadow the right to live. Salute to all LGBTI+ refugees who resist with their very existence in the face of all this violence!! This resistance is not only a struggle for survival but also a powerful message that a life of dignity, equality, and freedom is possible. Every existence, every breath, every word is a stance against oppression.
As Kaos GL Association’s Refugee Rights Program, we will continue to advocate for the inseparability of refugee and LGBTI+ rights, both in Turkey and around the world.
With solidarity, equality, and hope…”
Tags: human rights, life
