Reuters: US third-country deportations send 40 LGBT migrants to hostile African states
A Reuters investigation documented 40 migrants granted US protection over their LGBT status who were deported to African countries that criminalise same-sex relations or are described as hostile to LGBT people. DHS says ICE does not enforce the law on the basis of sexual orientation.
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The story, neutrally told
Right · 1Reuters documented 40 cases in which migrants granted US legal protection after being persecuted for their LGBT status were deported to third countries in Africa that either criminalise same-sex relations or have been described by the State Department as hostile to LGBT people. The Straits TimesRC “Latifou's case is one of 40 documented by Reuters where migrants granted US legal protection after being persecuted for their LGBT status were deported to third countries in Africa” Read at The Straits Times ↗ Right · 1Reuters tracked all 40, who come from across Africa as well as Iraq, Jamaica and Russia, by interviewing a dozen deportees and immigration lawyers and reviewing hundreds of pages of legal documents. The Straits TimesRC “Reuters has tracked the fate of all 40 – including people from across Africa, as well as Iraq, Jamaica and Russia – by interviewing a dozen deportees and immigration lawyers” Read at The Straits Times ↗ Right · 1Of the 40, sixteen remain in the countries they were deported to, some still detained; sixteen were repatriated to their home countries against their will; nine are in hiding in third locations; and one Ghanaian man is no longer in contact with his lawyers or relatives. The Straits TimesRC “Sixteen remain in the countries they were deported to and some are still detained.” Read at The Straits Times ↗
Right · 1The deportations were to three countries that explicitly criminalise same-sex sexual acts (Sierra Leone, Cameroon and Eswatini) and three that do not but where the State Department has documented abuses against LGBT people, including "corrective rape" and conversion therapy (Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea and the Democratic Republic of Congo). The Straits TimesRC “The 40 cases documented by Reuters involve deportations to three countries that explicitly criminalize same-sex sexual acts: Sierra Leone, Cameroon and Eswatini.” Read at The Straits Times ↗ Right · 1Abdou Latifou fled Togo after a mob assaulted him and threatened to kill him for kissing another man; a US immigration judge ruled last November that he could not safely be sent home, but in June he was flown to Sierra Leone, where gay men can face life in prison. The Straits TimesRC “In June, though, Latifou was forced onto a US deportation plane — not back to Togo but to Sierra Leone, a nation where gay men can be sentenced to life in prison under colonial-era laws.” Read at The Straits Times ↗ Right · 1Latifou was held two weeks in a hotel under police surveillance, then flown to Togo, from where he fled via Benin to Ivory Coast, where same-sex relations are legal but activists report rising homophobic violence. The Straits TimesRC “Same-sex relations are not illegal in his new home, but Ivorian activists have reported rising homophobic violence” Read at The Straits Times ↗
Right · 1Other deportees described a bisexual Ghanaian woman sent to Cameroon who then moved to northern Nigeria, a gay Ghanaian man hiding in Togo's forests, and a 44-year-old Mauritanian man held in an Eswatini prison for a month and a half before reaching Senegal, which recently doubled its maximum penalty for same-sex acts. The Straits TimesRC “He spent a month and a half in a mosquito-infested prison with no hot water, he said in an interview.” Read at The Straits Times ↗ Right · 1According to preliminary government data shared with Reuters, more than 40,000 people have been deported to third countries by ICE and Border Patrol since Trump's return to office, about 900 of them to African countries. The Straits TimesRC “more than 40,000 people in total have been deported to countries not their own by ICE and Border Patrol, according to preliminary government data shared with Reuters” Read at The Straits Times ↗ Right · 1More than half of the 40, including Latifou, were ineligible for asylum because they had not applied in countries they passed through, a bar under Biden-era restrictions that a federal court vacated in May; Latifou received a lesser protection that barred removal to Togo only. The Straits TimesRC “But more than half of the 40, including Latifou, were not eligible for asylum because they did not apply for it in countries they passed through before illegally entering the US.” Read at The Straits Times ↗
Right · 1In February, US District Judge Brian Murphy called the government's argument that targeted migrants had not asked not to be sent to repressive third countries an "absurdity"; the Supreme Court then put his ruling on hold, letting third-country deportations continue, and will hear arguments in December. The Straits TimesRC “On Tuesday, the Supreme Court put a hold on Murphy's ruling, allowing the administration to continue third-country deportations. The court will hear arguments in December.” Read at The Straits Times ↗ Right · 1Chandler Rebel, a Department of Homeland Security spokesman, said ICE "does not enforce the law on the basis of sexual orientation" and that third-country removals are "an essential public safety tool"; former senior US immigration official Claire Trickler-McNulty said such removals make "a mockery of our protection systems". Government spokespeople for the six countries did not respond to Reuters. The Straits TimesRC “Immigration and Customs Enforcement "does not enforce the law on the basis of sexual orientation, that would be illegal,"”“Government spokespeople for the six countries did not respond to requests for comment.” Read at The Straits Times ↗ Right · 1The Irish Independent carried the story under the headline that Trump's deportation push forces LGBT migrants into hostile terrain in third countries. Irish IndependentRC “Deportation push by Trump forces LGBT migrants into hostile terrain in third countries” Read at Irish Independent ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.
Left0 outlets
No left outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Centre0 outlets
No centre outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Right2 outlets
- Framing
- Both right-leaning outlets run the Reuters investigation with a headline blaming Trump's deportation push for forcing LGBT migrants onto hostile terrain; the Straits Times copy leads with a personal story of Abdou Latifou.
- Emphasis
- Individual deportees' hardship, the number of cases, and the legal backdrop of the Supreme Court hold on Judge Murphy's ruling.
- Leaves out or plays down
- No left or centre outlets covered it for comparison; the Irish Independent headline is the only content assessed from that outlet. The government response is limited to a short DHS statement; the six countries did not comment.
- Charged language
- “hostile terrain”“forces”
- For example
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“Trump's deportation push forces dozens of LGBT migrants onto hostile terrain” — The Straits Times
“Deportation push by Trump forces LGBT migrants into hostile terrain in third countries” — Irish Independent
What every side reports
- Reuters documented 40 LGBT migrants with US legal protection deported to hostile third countries in Africa.
- The Trump administration has deported tens of thousands of people to third countries.
- Both outlets headline the story as Trump's deportation push forcing LGBT migrants into hostile terrain.
Where accounts differ
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Whether the deportations target LGBT people or endanger them
- Right
- Reuters-sourced copy quotes critics saying removals make a mockery of protection systems; DHS says ICE does not enforce the law on the basis of sexual orientation and calls third-country removals an essential public safety tool.
Donald Trump person
Trump's administration is described as pursuing a wide-ranging immigration crackdown that has sent tens of thousands to third countries via deals with impoverished governments; DHS defends the practice as a public safety tool.
“President Donald Trump's administration has deported tens of thousands of people to third countries, enabled by deals with impoverished foreign governments.” — The Straits Times
US deportations topic
Critics and judges cited warn of risks to gay people; DHS says ICE does not enforce on the basis of sexual orientation and is not responsible once individuals leave custody.
“"When an individual is no longer in ICE custody then ICE will no longer be responsible for them,"” — The Straits Times
Left0 articles
No coverage yet.
Centre0 articles
No coverage yet.
Right2 articles
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The Straits TimesRC · · via Reuters
Trump's deportation push forces dozens of LGBT migrants onto hostile terrain
Critical Reuters copy run by the Straits Times, built around deportees' accounts and documented cases, with DHS response included.
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Deportation push by Trump forces LGBT migrants into hostile terrain in third countries
Critical Headline presents Trump's deportation push as forcing LGBT migrants into hostile terrain in third countries.
- 5 Oct 11:08 First The Straits TimesRC Trump's deportation push forces dozens of LGBT migrants onto hostile terrain via Reuters
- 6 Oct 05:30 +18h 21m Irish IndependentRC Deportation push by Trump forces LGBT migrants into hostile terrain in third countries
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.