Thank you for your interest in becoming a sponsor. Whether you are here to learn more about sponsorship in general or ready to be a sponsor now-- thank you for showing up for Trans & LGBTQ+. We believe that sponsorship is not simply an act of charity, but is a radical act of solidarity and liberatory love.
Trans & LGBTQ+ asylum seekers are often fleeing varying degrees of persecution, violence, and discrimination in their home countries simply for being who they are. Many folks make the journey to the U.S. through multiple countries often experiencing the same harm and mistreatment along the way that prompted them to leave their homes in the first place. Most make this journey without the support of family or friends and when they reach the border that separates the US from its neighbors, they've been forced to endure long periods waiting in Mexico with little to no resources because of the US Government's inhumane immigration policies which have shrunk access to asylum to near non-existence.
Once Trans & LGBTQ+ asylum seekers are finally able to request asylum, their requests are often treated with suspicion, outright denial of admission, or they are detained indefinitely in traumatizing and deadly conditions within ICE prisons for the duration of their asylum proceedings-- this is nearly guaranteed if they cannot identify someone who is willing to host them in their homes as a "sponsor."
This provides a vital opportunity to take action! We can demonstrate our solidarity with Trans & LGBTQ+ asylum seekers by opening our homes and sponsoring an asylum seeker so they can avoid unnecessary & deadly incarceration and pursue their asylum claims from a safe place. Together, we can be part of the liberation of our people right now and to use our voices and experiences to further the movement to end immigrant detention once and for all while re-imagining and building the communities that we truly want to live in.
Santa Fe Dreamers Project is seeking individuals (or organizations) to become sponsors, hosts, and members of a network of community support to our Trans & LGBTQ+ clients navigating the asylum process. Sponsors and hosts can help by providing free housing as well as material and emotional support to asylum seekers who identify as Trans and / or LGBTQ+. In addition to housing, sponsors help released individuals to form support networks and connect them to community-based legal, social, and health services.
To qualify to be a sponsor, individuals (including organizations and faith institutions) must have a steady source of income, be a lawful permanent resident or a citizen in the United States, and provide proof of US residence. Additionally, SFDP requests that its sponsors have or be willing to develop Trans & LGBTQ+ cultural competencies, including an awareness of trauma-informed care and where to find local legal and social services, including health care services and access to education.
If you are interested and meet the above requirements for sponsorship, please complete and submit the form below. Please be a part of the fight against immigrant detention and help us to support the release of Trans & LGBTQ+ asylum seekers from detention.
If you have any questions please contact the Sponsor Support Coordinator at
info@santafedreamersproject.org.