In 2011, Heartland Alliance International (HAI)
established the first ever national technical
assistance program dedicated to improving
the resettlement of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and
transgender (LGBT) refugees, with the support
of the US Office of Refugee Resettlement
(ORR). When President Obama issued the
December 2011 memorandum that called
upon US government bodies to advance
the human rights of LGBT persons globally,
ORR was quickly at the forefront of ensuring
protections for this vulnerable community and
has continued to demonstrate its commitment
to developing inclusive programs for LGBT
refugees and asylees. In just the last couple
years, we have seen an increase in staff
capacity to resettle LGBT refugees, and a
transformation in the network’s understanding
of and response to this population.