Understanding and Serving LGBTQ+ Refugee and Newcomer Clients
Switchboard
Switchboard is pleased to announce an upcoming webinar open to all refugee service providers, whether working at state agencies, resettlement agencies or affiliates, or other organizations. Please circulate this announcement widely among your colleagues!
Understanding and Serving LGBTQ+ Refugee and Newcomer Clients
Thursday, May 30, 2024
2:00 – 3:30 PM EST
Note: Please use a time zone converter to determine your local time for this webinar.
Registering in advance:
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing instructions for joining the webinar.
What will this webinar cover?
Many refugees and other newcomers who identify as LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other identities) face numerous barriers and vulnerabilities. Often, they have been exposed to specific trauma related to their sexual orientation and gender identity. Upon arrival in the U.S., many may face complex and unique challenges, such as marginalization, discrimination, and isolation, as well as difficulties integrating within their cultural communities and the local communities where they resettle. It is essential for service providers to understand the fundamentals of gender identity and sexual orientation within newcomers’ diverse cultural contexts. It is equally important to gain the skills needed to support LGBTQ+ clients sensitively and equitably. This webinar will begin to introduce these terms and concepts so that participants can more effectively support and advocate for LGBTQ+ clients. We will use case scenarios and a panel discussion with resettlement and immigration service providers who have firsthand experience as LGBTQ+ newcomers to allow participants to explore special considerations and nuances of serving LGBTQ+ clients.
Is this webinar for me?
This webinar is designed for newcomer service providers who want to improve the services and support they provide to LGBTQ+ refugees and newcomers. No prior knowledge of the subject matter is required.
Why should I participate?
After participating in this 90-minute webinar, you will be able to:
- Define LGBTQ+, sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression within diverse newcomer cultures and contexts
- Summarize some of the unique challenges and nuances LGBTQ+ refugees and newcomers experience in their resettlement to the U.S.
Identify important considerations and skills in serving and advocating for LGBTQ+ newcomer clients
Facilitator
Maya Wahrman, MSW, LSW, (she/her) is a Switchboard Training Officer with a focus on client-centered services. She is a social worker licensed in New Jersey with a lifelong commitment to working with refugees and immigrants. She brings to Switchboard seven years of experience in resettlement and immigrant services, including direct case management, mental health counseling, school and education support, program management, and state government policy and administration. Maya previously served as the Refugee Health and Wellness Specialist in the New Jersey Office of New Americans. Maya has worked with LGBTQ+ clients directly and has engaged in local and agency-level advocacy to improve inclusivity for LGBTQ+ clients and staff. Maya holds an MSW from Rutgers University and a BA in History, with certificates in Near Eastern Studies and Creative Writing, from Princeton University. She speaks English, Hebrew, and Spanish fluently and has basic proficiency in Arabic.
Panelists
Kansiime Shalom (they/them) is a resettlement caseworker at the International Rescue Committee, Denver, and is a speaker with the Colorado Refugee Speakers Bureau. They are a co-founder and the Executive Director of Women for Women Africa, an organization that advocates for equality for all lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer/non-binary plus (LBTQ/NB+) individuals. As an activist and a peer educator for key population health services, they continue to advocate for the inclusion of female-born and female-identifying individuals, and have pioneered different programs for lesbian, transgender, and gender non-conforming (LTGNC) refugees and nationals to engage in positions of leadership and broader economic development. They are currently working to create a safe space/shelter to help reduce the number of LBTQ/NB youth in Kenya—both refugees and nationals who have been displaced—who are homeless because of their sexual orientation and identity.
Craig M. Mortley, MSc, (he/him) is an emerging social worker-scholar; diversity, equity, and inclusion trainer; and forced migration practitioner dedicated to supporting LGBTQ+ asylum seekers and diverse refugee populations. As a second-year PhD student at the University of Connecticut School of Social Work, Craig brings a unique perspective to his work, rooted in his own experiences as a former asylum seeker. His expertise encompasses a broad range of issue areas, including race and identity, gender-based violence, and equity-centered practices in refugees’ and asylum seekers’ integration, with a strong commitment to LGBTQ+ rights. Craig’s scholarly work is driven by a passion for fostering equity-centered practices, understanding refugee narratives, and enhancing refugee representation in decision-making spaces. His research critically examines the ethics of representation of queer displaced peoples, advocating for a continuum of care for displaced individuals beyond crisis assistance.