Through numerous interviews with activists and members of the LGBTQ+ community around the world, Ritholtz’s article demonstrates the ways in which people with diverse sexual orientation, gender identities and expressions are excluded from accessing humanitarian services during the COVID-19 pandemic. The article looks at the impacts of stay-at-home orders; ‘gender quarantines’ in Latin America; the tying of food-aid to registered addresses (and the unique challenges this poses for gender non-conforming people); and other systemic exclusions faced by the community in the wake of the pandemic.
The article then considers how humanitarian responses could be more inclusive, looking at the Special Rapporteur on SOGI, Victor Madrigal-Borloz, recently announced ASPIRE guidelines. The article specifically points to the intersectional identities of people within in the LGBTQ+ community, and notes that not all members of the community experience the same types or same magnitude of exclusion–for some, it is much worse than for others.
