Reports

“I Just Try to Make It Home Safe”

Violence and the Human Rights of Transgender People in the United States

The 65-page report, “‘I Just Try to Make It Home Safe’ Violence and the Human Rights of Transgender People in the United States,” documents how persistent marginalization puts transgender people, particularly Black transgender women, at heightened risk of violence at the hands of strangers, partners, family members, and law enforcement.

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  • "We'll Show You You're a Woman"

    Violence and Discrimination against Black Lesbians and Transgender Men in South Africa

    This 93-page report is based on more than 120 interviews conducted in six provinces. Human Rights Watch found that lesbians and transgender men face extensive discrimination and violence in their daily lives, both from private individuals and government officials.

  • Controlling Bodies, Denying Identities

    Human Rights Violations against Trans People in the Netherlands

    This report documents the impact of a 1985 law, article 28 of the civil code, on the daily life of transgender people. The requirements violate transgender people’s rights to personal autonomy and physical integrity and deny them the ability to define their own gender identity.

  • Rights at Risk

    State Response to HIV in Mississippi

    This 59-page report documents the harmful impact of Mississippi's policies on state residents, including people living with HIV and those at high risk of contracting it.

  • “We Are a Buried Generation”

    Discrimination and Violence against Sexual Minorities in Iran

    Based on testimony from more than 100 Iranians, this report documents discrimination and violence against LGBT people and others whose sexual practices and gender expression do not conform to government-endorsed socio-religious norms.

  • Fear for Life

    Violence against Gay Men and Men Perceived as Gay in Senegal

    This 95-page report includes interviews with dozens of people who have faced threats and violence at the hands of both the police and others in the community. It looks in detail at two key incidents: the "gay marriage" scandal of February 2008; and the arrest of the "nine homosexuals of Mbao" in December 2008.

  • Criminalizing Identities

    Rights Abuses in Cameroon based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity

    This 62-page report details how the government uses article 347 bis of the Penal Code to deny basic rights to people perceived to be gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT).

  • “Tough, Fair, and Practical”

    A Human Rights Framework for Immigration Reform in the United States

    This 24-page report proposes a framework for improving US immigration law that would give immigrant crime victims a chance to seek justice, protect workers, respect the private and family life of longtime residents, and provide fair treatment for immigrants who come before the courts.

  • "They Want Us Exterminated"

    Murder, Torture, Sexual Orientation and Gender in Iraq

    This 67-page report documents a wide-reaching campaign of extrajudicial executions, kidnappings, and torture of gay men that began in early 2009. The killings began in the vast Baghdad neighborhood of Sadr City, a stronghold of Moqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army militia, and spread to many cities across Iraq.

  • Forbidden

    Institutionalizing Discrimination against Gays and Lesbians in Burundi

    This report consists of narratives and photos of Burundian gays and lesbians that bring to life the daily struggles faced by the small lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community in Burundi.

  • Together, Apart

    Organizing around Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Worldwide

    This 44-page report demonstrates that many groups defending LGBT rights – especially throughout the global South – still have limited access to funding, and courageously face sometimes-murderous attacks without adequate support from a broader human rights community.

  • "Not Worth a Penny"

    Human Rights Abuses against Transgender People in Honduras

    This 45-page report details abuses based on gender identity and expression, including rape, beatings, extortion, and arbitrary detentions by law enforcement officials. It also documents police inaction and recurrent failure to investigate violence against transgender people.

  • This Alien Legacy

    The Origins of "Sodomy" Laws in British Colonialism

    This 66-page report describes how laws in over three dozen countries, from India to Uganda and from Nigeria to Papua New Guinea, derive from a single law on homosexual conduct that British colonial rulers imposed on India in 1860.

  • These Everyday Humiliations

    Violence Against Lesbians, Bisexual Women, and Transgender Men in Kyrgyzstan

    Violence against women is a nationwide crisis in Kyrgyzstan. But women who are attracted to other women, or who violate rigid gender roles defining how a woman should look or behave, may be singled out for violent retaliation. Moreover, the government ignores their needs—and denies their very existence.

  • “We Need a Law for Liberation”

    Gender, Sexuality, and Human Rights in a Changing Turkey

    This 123-page report documents a long and continuing history of violence and abuse based on sexual orientation and gender identity.