Germany serves as a haven for gay people all around the world, and refugees hope to claim it as their new home — most wanting to settle in Berlin.
By Richelle Boyd
Asylum seeker Asha holding the Iranian flag at a protest against the Iranian regime, July, 2021 in Cologne, Germany.
Asha E., a 37-year-old HIV researcher and activist, came to Germany in November 2019 to study for a course in practical biology and neuroscience. While studying here, he got a call from his mother: the Iranian authorities believed he was gay and had raided his apartment.
They took his laptop, something that showed messages with LGBTQ+ activists and private photos he had saved and shared with men he was dating.