Providing LGBTQ+ Caribbean immigrants with the support to achieve stability and security in the USA.

CEP’s ‘Immigration Justice: LGBTQ+ Immigrant Empowerment Initiative’ supports LGBTQ+ immigrants from the Caribbean as they navigate complex immigration systems. 

Our mission is to empower and uplift these individuals by providing them with the necessary tools, resources, and legal support to thrive in the United States. Since its inception in 2015, the initiative has made significant strides in supporting Caribbean LGBTQ+ asylum seekers. To date, we have facilitated legal services for over 500 individuals, helping them secure political asylum in the United States. Our partnerships with organizations such as the New York City Anti-Violence Project and Immigration Equality have been instrumental in these successes.

In 2024 alone, we connected 175 LGBTQ+ asylum seekers, many of whom are queer and trans people of color, to essential legal services. These individuals have faced numerous challenges, including the impacts of Title 42, anti-immigrant policies, and threats of mass deportation. Our initiative has been a beacon of hope and support for those adversely affected by these restrictive measures.

March to Protect Queer & Trans Asylum Seekers

On March 19, 2021 CEP held a rally and march at Foley Square in New York City in memory of Faby Federick

The event sought to demand the Biden-Harris administration keep its promises on the campaign trail to protect Black and all Queer and Trans asylum seekers. The rally was dedicated to Faby Federick, a trans woman who died by suicide on March 7, 2021. After years of exploitation in Costa Rica, Faby fled to America only to face homelessness in Los Angeles, a year in an ICE detention camp, and then a global pandemic, housing insecurity, and health problems shortly after arriving in NY. Despite all those obstacles and more, Faby remained determined, managing to learn English, prepare for the high school equivalency exam, befriend many, and train as a chef. Faby had big dreams of higher education, making political change, and starting a family. Tragically, their life was cut short. 

Action endorsed by: Colectivo Intercultural TRANSgrediendo, Reclaim Pride Coalition, Rise and Resist, CosechaNYC, Lambda Legal, Impulse Group NYC, Black Legal Observer Coalition, Families For Freedom, and Freedom For Immigrants

Virtual Rally & Phone Zap to Protect Queer & Trans Immigrants

On January 22nd, 2021 CEP held a remote phone zap and virtual rally to activate the incoming Biden-Harris administration, calling upon them to execute the following within the first 100 days of taking office:

  • End the detention of Black queer and trans immigrants and Protect trans and queer Muslim migrants

  • Defund the police and begin the transition away from the prison industrial complex

  • Decriminalize border crossing, abolish ICE and #FreeThemAll from ICE facilities as a response to COVID-19 and its threat to people who are currently incarcerated

  • Empower and provide access to healthcare for LGBTQ+ immigrants through universal health care, education reform, and Include LGBTQ+ immigrants in the Biden-Harris administration Path to citizenship policy for 11 million undocumented people

  • Prioritize education that uplift the lives of trans women of color -- provide homes/resources/job opportunities, programs and education around trans identity, challenge religious or hateful speech etc., and don't just punish in the aftermath

  • Strengthen asylum laws, so that LGBTQ+ migrants who are fleeing discrimination and violence can get refuge in the US 

  • Increase funding for youth education, support state-level legislation around LGBTQ+ rights, pronouns, and encourage education in religious spaces around sexuality and gender

The aim of the rally was to uplift LGBTQ+ migrant voices and protect queer lives, particularly the lives of Black and brown, trans, non-binary, and disabled folks. CEP called upon the Biden-Harris administration to challenge the country’s individualist, capitalistic, colonialist, and racist history in order to begin a long but fulfilling transformative process toward a just future. All of which while remembering the lives of those lost under the first Trump administration, and recalling the legacy of leaders of generations past who fought for liberation for queer and trans people, teaching us to stay strong in the face of hate and ignorance.

Organizers: