How a shelter hit by Trump's aid cuts protects LGBTQ migrants in Mexico
Casa Frida, which aids LGBTQ migrants fleeing identity-based violence, lost 60% of its funds after Trump ordered the suspension of foreign assistance programs.
TAPACHULA, Mexico — Ana Esquivel no longer feels like her heart stops every time she sees a police officer.
“We’ve been told that they won’t harass or mistreat us here, but back home, if a male name is spotted on your ID, you could spend the night detained,” said the 50-year-old transgender woman. She fled Cuba fearing for her safety and arrived in Mexico earlier this year.
Esquivel settled in the southern city of Tapachula, hoping to dodge the Trump’s administration crackdown on migration and reach the United States. But unlike many who turned back after their Border Patrol appointments got canceled, returning home is not an option for LGBTQ migrants.
Transgender women Rachel Perez, left, and Ana Esquivel, who applied for asylum in Mexico, at Casa Frida.Moises Castillo / AP“The LGBT population doesn’t necessarily leave their countries for the same reasons as others,” said Mariana de la Cruz, operations director at Casa Frida, a shelter that supports LGBTQ migrants and lost 60% of its funds after President Donald Trump ordered the suspension of foreign assistance programs in January.
“They leave due to discrimination and violence based on their gender identity,” de la Cruz said. “Beyond economic reasons or the American Dream, they leave because they need to survive.”
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