Oasis Clients Lead Fresno Pride March
In June 2024, Oasis participated in the Fresno Rainbow Pride Festival—our third consecutive year. The vast majority of our clients are LGBTQ+ asylum seekers who have suffered severe persecution in their home countries due to their sexuality, gender identity, and/or HIV status. They are resilient individuals who have taken control over their own lives to overcome past pain and trauma. This year, our clients in the Central Valley recruited one another, and invited their friends to experience the bliss of marching in unity while celebrating our community’s uniqueness and unapologetic queerness—the experience was cathartic for everyone who participated.
“Witnessing my clients embrace their sexuality and queerness in front of the community was amazing. Many start off their journey with us afraid, nervous, shy, and at times struggling with their own identity and sexuality. Seeing how they come out of their shell is a great thing to experience. The happiness, playfulness, and dance moves they showcase is so powerful not only for them, but for us as their representatives.”
History of Fresno and the Central Valley
LGBTQ+ immigrants struggle to access legal representatives who are sensitive to and knowledgeable of their unique challenges as people who have been persecuted due to their sexuality, gender identity, and/or HIV-status. While the need for resources is demonstrated broadly, it especially holds true for queer and trans immigrants living in the Central Valley. Unfortunately, the region is also plagued by individuals committing immigration fraud, robbing already disadvantaged immigrants of their savings and financial safety net by promising legal services that they are unable to deliver. Additionally, conservative ideals in the region contribute to the stigma surrounding sexuality and gender identity.
There are an estimated 60,000 undocumented LGBTQ+ immigrants in California, with over 10,000 in the Central Valley. Without immigration status, LGBTQ+ immigrants do not have the legal protections needed to live a secure and fulfilling life.
Oasis opened its Fresno office, the largest city in the Central Valley, to great fanfare in April 2022. This milestone provides a central space for our Central Valley clients to access our services. Previously, clients from the Central Valley would travel hours to and from our Berkeley office just to work with our team.
By the end of 2023, 15% of over 300 new annual clients from California reside in the Central Valley.
Providing Legal and Social Services, Building Community
Our physical office in Fresno would not have been established but for the explicit demand from LGBTQ+ asylum seekers expressing a strong need for our services in the Central Valley. Our Central Valley team includes a Legal Advocate, Legal Fellow, and a Social Services Coordinator. With guidance from several directors from our Berkeley office, they all provide support to LGBTQ+ asylum seekers and connect them to life-saving resources.
“Building community and feeling safe is one of things we strive to provide for our clients. To see them make friends and build long lasting relationships through Pride events is so fulfilling. Offering the space to talk, play music, and decorate props helps them make happy memories in a region where they do not always feel welcomed.”
Oasis is the leading provider of legal services and case management for LGBTQ+ immigrants in the Central Valley—our wraparound services are a holistic approach to improve our clients’ overall wellbeing
Power of Community (LGBTQ+ Immigrants)
Our staff from Berkeley and Fresno, along with clients from all over the Central Valley, came together to march in the Fresno Rainbow Pride Festival. The parade organizers set the theme this year as “Rainbow Wave – Navigating Through The Current,” and so our parade contingent decorated rainbow umbrellas to mimic the fluid jellyfish–ancient, adaptable, and abundant.
“Fresno Pride has never stopped being a protest. Fresno queers share power through our visibility and vulnerability because oftentimes it is not safe for us to be openly queer or gender non-conforming. My favorite part of Fresno Pride was getting into drag and having families and children come up to me and say “Slaaaaay queen!”
Our staff received such positive feedback from clients that we are now looking to participate in additional Pride parades in counties where our clients live so that they, too, can find support and visibility alongside other queer and trans immigrants. Significant events like Pride parades are another mechanism for reaching LGBTQ+ asylum seekers who may not otherwise know about the services and community that exists for them.
Published June 19, 2024