Canada has witnessed a striking rise in asylum requests from LGBTQ+ Americans, clearly due to escalating fears of persecution under President Donald Trump’s return to power. The NGO Rainbow Railroad, which aids sexual and gender minorities at risk globally, has reported a surge in requests, receiving 8,500 appeals for help since early 2025. The group highlights a tenfold increase in assistance requests from the U.S. in June alone, compared to the previous year, underscoring the worsening climate for LGBTQ+ rights south of the border.
This pattern is particularly pronounced among transgender Americans, many of whom cite intensified anti-trans policies as the impetus for seeking refuge. Since Trump’s re-election, measures such as executive orders criminalising trans identities, restrictions on gender marker changes in official documents, and rollbacks on civil rights and gender-affirming healthcare have fostered an environment of hostility. Lawyers and activists in Canada have described being inundated with calls from transgender individuals desperate to find safety, describing the situation as an ‘existential assault’ on the community. Some parents have also reached out, worried about the treatment of their children amid rhetoric labelling gender-affirming care as ‘child sexual mutilation’.
The Canadian government, which maintains a liberal stance on LGBTQ+ immigration, has special programs aimed at protecting those persecuted for their sexual orientation or gender identity. However, obtaining asylum from the U.S. remains complex. Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Board emphasises that applicants must prove that no region within the U.S. can offer them protection, a high bar given the longstanding bilateral “Safe Third Country Agreement” that requires asylum seekers to request protection in the first safe country they enter. Rainbow Railroad and other advocacy groups have called for suspending this agreement, arguing it hinders the safety and rights of queer and trans refugees, who may face acute dangers if detained by U.S. immigration enforcement.
Data from Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Board supports the observed surge; in the first half of 2025, more Americans applied for refugee status in Canada than in the entire previous year, marking the highest figures since 2019. While American claims remain a small fraction of total refugee applications, the increase is significant and believed to be driven largely by transgender individuals responding to political and legal setbacks including U.S. Supreme Court rulings restricting gender-affirming care, military service, and participation in sports.
Figures from Rainbow Railroad reveal that on Election Day in November 2024, the NGO received 1,200 requests from Americans alone, their highest single-day total from any country. This demand coincides with broader international trends noted by the organisation, which cite growing xenophobia, anti-refugee sentiment, and queerphobia worldwide.
Despite the welcoming nature of Canadian society towards LGBTQ+ people, the asylum process remains daunting. Applicants must navigate stringent criteria, demonstrating real and sustained persecution and governmental failure to protect them. Lawyers like Yameena Ansari argue that the requirement to conform to a binary gender identity on official documents amounts to a form of violence against transgender individuals, highlighting the deep systemic challenges faced even in countries considered safe havens.
For many transgender Americans like Hannah Kreager, who fled Arizona to seek refuge in Calgary, Canada represents not just a physical safe space but a chance to rebuild lives away from fear and hostility. Their experiences illuminate a stark reality: in a country historically viewed as a beacon of LGBT rights, shifting political tides and legal reversals in the United States are prompting an unprecedented movement of people seeking asylum north of the border.
Source: Noah Wire Services
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