The Post-ABC Situation of LGB Refugees in Europe

Authors

Erin Gomez

Abstract

This Comment discusses the current European legal framework for determining whether sexual minority asylum seekers are credible when they allege their sexual identities. The Comment pays special attention to the European Court of Justice's most recent ruling on the topic, A, B and C v. Staatssecretaris van Veiligheid en Justitie (ABC), and critiques the Court's holdings. This Comment then highlights what the author believes to be the three major problems facing sexual minority credibility determinations following ABC: (1) the use of sexually explicit questioning and invasive procedures to determine asylum applicants' sexualities; (2) the focus on asylum applicants' homosexual self-identification as opposed to their noncompliance with heterosexual norms; and (3) reliance on stereotypes to determine asylum applicants' sexualities. This Comment critically considers the English Barrister S. Chelvan's DSSH Method as a solution to these three problems and concludes by suggesting the Method and other practices to solve the problems.

Recommended Citation

Erin Gomez, The Post-ABC Situation of LGB Refugees in Europe, 30 Emory Int'l L. Rev. 475 (2016).
Available at: https://scholarlycommons.law.emory.edu/eilr/vol30/iss3/4