Urban struggles: Navigating the complex world of queer youth and queer refugees in the city of The Hague

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Queer youth in particular, experience higher risks of social isolation and depression, often struggling to find acceptance among peers. The problem is especially critical for those still living in conservative family environments. Meanwhile, queer refugees face discrimination on multiple fronts – be it in housing, employment or their social interactions – often finding little acceptance within their own refugee and diaspora communities.

the project is 100% LGBTIQ+ driven, with all senior and young researchers identifying as queer

The project Helping municipal policy makers and school children better understand the life experiences of LGBTQ youth and refugees in The Hague, funded by the municipality of The Hague, is an ongoing project that started in April 2022. It is a collaborative effort involving researchers from two academic institutions (the International Institute of Social Studies and The Hague University of Applied Sciences) and two LGBTIQ+ NGOs in The Hague (the Jong&Out group of COC Haaglanden and Rainbow Den Haag).

The project researches the recent life experiences of queer youth and refugees in The Hague, aiming to draw relevant policy recommendations for municipal policy makers and raise awareness through a 10-min documentary available in both Dutch and English.

The project has a strong autoethnographic component. Queer research often fails to include queer researchers in the research design, execution and analysis. For this reason, the project is 100% LGBTIQ+ driven with all senior and young researchers identifying as queer.

The project hired six queer young and refugee researchers who carried out in-depth interviews with 17 queer youth and 19 queer refugees residing in The Hague. This had multiple important benefits. Firstly, it helped to equip these six queer youth and refugees researchers with new skills that will strengthen their career perspectives within the city of The Hague (queerpowerment). It also meant that the project questionnaires were prepared with invaluable input from the queer youth and refugees who belong to the researched communities and could therefore link their personal lived experiences with the broader project objectives. Respondents also felt more comfortable being interviewed by members of their own queer communities. This helped create more trusting, safe spaces where interviewees could open up when discussing their personal lived experiences in The Hague.

Characteristics of study participants

The residential location of the participants was widely dispersed, with the queer youth living in several areas of The Hague. Several currently live in neighbouring cities but worked or lived in The Hague until recently. The queer refugees also all live in The Hague, with one recently relocating to the city from nearby Rijswijk.

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 Sexual orientation and identity of respondents
Figure 1 - Sexual orientation and identity of respondents

Analysing the combined sample of queer youth and refugees reveals a broad spectrum of sexual orientations and gender identities (Fig 1). The majority self-identity as homosexual or bisexual (13 and 10 respondents correspondingly). However, there are substantial differences between the two subgroups. Queer refugees tend to self-identify from fewer categories (e.g., homosexual, lesbian, queer, bisexual and pansexual), while queer youth self-identify from a much wider range of categories. Furthermore, the queer refugees appear to self-identify with a single category.

In contrast, seven respondents of the queer youth adopted multiple identities (e.g. transman + pansexual, transman + homosexual, transman + bisexual, queer + non-binary, asexual + lesbian + gender-fluid, bisexual + gender-fluid + non-binary or pansexual + non-binary + omnisexual). Five of the queer youth identify as transmen.

Some key findings

Perceptions of LGBTIQ+ friendliness of The Hague

The majority of respondents (57 per cent or 20 participants) consider the LGBTIQ+ openness/friendliness of The Hague as average, 23 per cent (or 8) as low, 11 per cent (or 4) as high and 9 per cent (or 3) as very high (Fig 2).

Sana* (20, lesbian) feels that The Hague scores low in terms of LGBTIQ+ openness because of the widespread use of derogatory terms: From my personal experience in my neighbourhood, it's much scarier to be homosexual here compared to places like Utrecht or Amsterdam, where I often visit. I hear words like ‘cancer f*ggot’ daily on public transportation and, in the past, at my high school as insults directed at homosexuals. This makes me feel unsafe being openly gay because you know that the majority in your environment views it negatively and are also capable of verbally abusing you.

The majority of respondent consider the LGBTIQ+ openess/friendliness of The Hague as average

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LGBTIQ+ openness of The Hague as a place of residence
Figure 2 - LGBTIQ+ openness of The Hague as a place of residence

 

Several respondents have experienced incidences (related to their sexuality /gender identities) in public that made them feel unsafe or uncomfortable.

Sana (20, lesbian) mentions cautionary feelings about holding hands in public: Last year, I never dared to hold my girlfriend's hand in public. I am by nature cautious of the people around me, and I noticed that when we did, people would give us dirty looks and walk away. It made me feel unsafe, and since then, I’ve stopped doing it.

Amir (30, bisexual) concurs: [When] I came to Den Haag, I thought I would express myself more with no fear, but I heard a lot of time calling me homo because I had coloured hair and piercings, till the moment I stopped expressing myself and try my best to pass as heterosexual person.

Yusuf (16, transman, pansexual) discusses the mental impact of anti-LGBTIQ+ communication: I once experienced religious people in the city preaching against LGBTQ, handing out flyers. Someone tried to force a flyer into my hand while shouting things like ‘homosexuality is a sin’, even though I didn’t want it at all. I found them quite aggressive, and I really felt unsafe at that moment.

Some hostile incidences take place at school.

Edwin (19, queer, non-binary) explains how they have felt unsafe at school: Because I was openly queer, I quickly became a target of verbal bullying … My negative experiences have made me insecure. I don't really dare to be openly queer anymore.

Luuk (18, transman) says that intimidation at times goes beyond verbal abuse: I was part of the GSA (Gender and Sexuality Alliance) and when we organized events for Purple Friday, we got things thrown at us. They would film us when we got out of the gender-neutral bathroom.

Paul (23, transman) explains some of the specific challenges faced by the trans community and how difficult it is to navigate in a society that is dominated by binary gender identities: I find public restrooms uncomfortable because I never know which one to use. Often, there are no gender-neutral options either. I also feel uncomfortable in fitting rooms for the same reason. Clothing stores usually have clear divisions between men's and women's clothing, which always gives me a weird feeling. I experience discomfort in any situation where I have to choose between male or female.

Some concluding remarks

Our project helps provide a voice to the often-unheard concerns of vulnerable queer communities. For example, many expressed the need for schools to take anti-LGBTIQ+ behaviour more seriously. Daan (24, gay, transman) noted that some initiatives fall short, citing instances where rainbow flags were burned during Purple Friday events, with little consequence for the students involved. Kees (16, pansexual) thinks that the biggest problems lie with families from non-Dutch ethnic backgrounds, where LHBTIQ+ tolerance is lower. Sabrina (18, bisexual) and Lieke (bisexual) mention the need for more LGBTIQ+ safe meeting spaces for queer youth who are younger than 18 years of age. Dirk (17, bisexual) and Farid (23, queer) say that more surveillance on streets would help reduce violence and bullying on the basis of sexuality or gender identity.

[The] project helps provide a voice to often unheard concerns of vulnerable queer communities

Sabrina (18, bisexual) and Andrei (39, gay) believe that healthcare provision should become more LGBTIQ+ friendly and informed. They refer particularly to the provision of relevant information (e.g. communication strategies about gender transitioning) but also about the training of medical personnel so that they do not automatically assume a patient’s sexual orientation.

Several respondents highlighted the need for greater visibility of queer identities (including Jeroen (17, bisexual), Ali (24, gay), Amir (30, bisexual), Akello (46, gay), Ejau (30, bisexual), Amina (34, lesbian), Andrei (39, gay), Daniel (34, bisexual), Farid (23, queer), Isaberiye (28, gay), Jamila (25, pansexual), and Mateo (27, gay)).

Amir (30, bisexual) suggests that this should also be the case at asylum seeker centres (AZCs) with Farid (23, queer) and Mateo (27, gay) adding that this is especially important in neighbourhoods that are considered conservative. Isaac (38, gay) says:  There should be more Rainbow flags in different public buildings and neighbourhoods in Den Haag.

Zahra (17, asexual, lesbian and gender-fluid) adds: In June, you could see those small LGBTQ flags hanging on the trams in The Hague. It was very subtle, so you only noticed it if you looked for it or paid attention. It really made me happy to see that.

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Zahra narrating their lives experiences
Figure 3 - Zahra narrating their lived experiences (Excerpt from the documentary)

*Pseudonyms are used throughout.

LGBTQ+ youth and migrants in The Hague

What specific challenges do LGBTQ+ refugees and youth face due to their overlapping marginalized identities? This documentary sheds light on the types of exclusion queer youth and migrants face in the city of The Hague.

Filmed by Koen Samson, in close collaboration with partners at ISS, The Hague University of Applied Sciences, COC Haaglanden and Rainbow Den Haag.