RUSA LGBTQ strongly condemns recent executive orders by President Trump that target immigrants, asylum seekers, and LGBTQIA+ individuals. These policies, including the rollback of gender recognition to only male and female as assigned at birth and heightened restrictions on immigration and asylum processes, represent a direct attack on human rights. As an organization that works with Russian-speaking queer immigrants, these policies resemble laws passed by dictator and war criminal Vladimir Putin, and we know too well what such attacks lead can lead to. 

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The refusal to recognize transgender and non-binary identities, coupled with restrictions on federal support for gender-affirming care, strips away dignity and safety from some of the most vulnerable among us. Simultaneously, expanded deportation efforts and the reinstatement of the "Remain in Mexico" policy are forcing countless asylum seekers—many of whom are fleeing anti-LGBTQIA+ persecution—into dangerous and inhumane conditions.​