Biden Announces Efforts to Help LGBTQ Ukrainians Enter the United States

President Biden announced last week that his team is taking steps to help up to 100,000 Ukrainians, and others fleeing from the Russian conflict, resettle in the United States.

The Biden administration is working to expand the legal pathways that allow refugees to safely relocate in the U.S. His plan would allow at-risk groups such as activists, journalists, and members of the LGBTQ community to reconnect with family members in the United States and find temporary housing, food, clean water, and medical care.

LGBTQ Ukrainians, along with those from other marginalized groups, have been disproportionately targeted throughout this crisis and are in need of assistance immediately. In the past decade, Putin has enacted numerous measures to persecute members of the LGBTQ community including a ban on same-gender marriage in the Russian constitution, a ban on adoptions by same-gender couples, and tolerance for a number of violent acts against gay men.

The Human Rights Campaign—the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer civil rights organization—welcomes the Biden administration’s efforts to provide solutions for LGBTQ Ukrainians affected by the Russian invasion, but recognizes there is much more to be done.

“While all Ukrainians are deeply affected by the Russian war of aggression, LGBTQ+ people are especially vulnerable because of the disproportionate impact that humanitarian crises and conflict have on already marginalized groups,” says Jean Freedberg, HRC’s director of global partnerships.

More than 4 million have fled Ukraine since the attack began in late February. While Biden is opening doors for people to find refuge in the United States, he believes that most will seek asylum in Europe to stay close to their families and return home once it is safe for them to do so.

In addition to welcoming refugees into the United States, the Biden administration states in a recent briefing they are prepared to provide more than $1 billion in new funding toward humanitarian assistance for those affected by Russia’s war in Ukraine. This funding will go toward food, shelter, clean water, medical supplies, and other forms of assistance.

They also recently announced an additional $320 million in democracy and human rights funding to Ukraine and its neighbors. The U.S. is recovering from dramatic cuts in the refugee program executed by the Trump administration, so alternative pathways for people to safely enter the country are currently being sought out by Biden and his team.