COVID-19 & LBGTI people

Faso Aishath Updated by Faso Aishath

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on LGBTI people (to date) - why the vulnerability?

  1. LOSS OF INCOME
  • Discrimination in education/employment
  • Informal or criminalised sectors
  • No savings, benefits, sick leave, etc. - poverty, hunger, exploitation
  • Discrimination in housing
  • Homelessness, crowded spaces, unsafe family homes, temporary housing
  1. HEALTHCARE
  • No health insurance
  • Avoidance of healthcare services
  • Specialised healthcare needs: trans specific healthcare, HIV medication, PrEP & PEP, STI testing○Worsening of health status: COVID-19 safety/health and others
  1. FAMILY OR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
  • Unsafe family homes & lockdowns
  • Increased violence
  • No support & no protection
  1. ISOLATION, LONELINESS, ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, SUICIDE
  • Aggravated during COVID-19
  • Lack of community support
  • Mental health problems & suicide
  1. VIOLENCE, STIGMA, DISCRIMINATION, SCAPEGOATING

Political/religious/media rhetoric

Increase in hate speech & violence

  1. ABUSE OF STATE POWER
  • Inability to come together
  • Inability to leave the house safely: undocumented migrants/trans people
  • Gendered restrictions
  • No access to benefits & services○Violence, deportation, isolation, health risks
  1. ORGANISATIONAL SURVIVAL 
  • Lack of state support / funding
  • Organisations and activists under threat 

NHRI RESPONSES

  • Helping the government identify LGBTI people as a vulnerable group
  • Regular monitoring meetings with civil society working on LGBTI issues
  • Awareness raising for the public or LGBTI people
  • Conduct research on the impact on LGBTI people and other vulnerable groups
  • Participation in legislative processes to highlight the situation & needs of LGBTI people
    • Essential healthcare services?
    • Gendered lockdown measures?
    • Is the recovery plan inclusive?
    • Are people who are not men or women, included? LGBTI?
  • Legal opinions on discriminatory laws or regulations
  • Highlight the situation of LGBTI people in reports & statements
  • Media statements about specific human rights violations affecting LGBTI people: L   G   B   T   I
  • Address complaints from LGBTI people
  • Ensure that your staff is aware about LGBTI issues

How did we do?

What more NHRIs can do

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