The case of Shakira Galíndez highlights a growing crisis for trans Venezuelan asylum seekers in the U.S.

• Shakira Galíndez, a 30-year-old transgender Venezuelan woman, has been held in U.S. immigration detention for months after being arrested while appearing for an immigration hearing.
• Her case illustrates a widening gap between the protections promised to vulnerable refugees and the harsh realities faced by LGBTQ+ individuals within the U.S. detention system.
• Human rights advocates are documenting systemic patterns of isolation, mistreatment, and inadequate care that fail to respect the gender identity of detained transgender migrants.

Case Details and Background

• Galíndez fled Venezuela to escape systemic discrimination, violence, and a lack of legal recognition for transgender individuals.
• Her experience is being documented by photographer José Miguel Pareja through ongoing correspondence, which details irregularities in her legal case and poor treatment at the LaSalle Detention Center.

Challenges in Detention

• Although federal policies—influenced by the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA)—require case-by-case housing decisions based on gender identity, implementation is often failing.
• Reports indicate that Galíndez spent over a month in solitary confinement, a practice human rights experts characterize as torture; nearly 90 percent of incarcerated transgender people have reportedly been subjected to this.
• During Donald Trump’s second term, executive orders targeting "gender ideology" have exacerbated conditions, including the placement of trans women in men’s prisons and the reduction of gender-affirming care.

Vulnerability of Venezuelan LGBTQ+ Migrants

• Venezuela currently offers no comprehensive legal framework for gender identity, leaving LGBTQ+ citizens vulnerable to structural barriers, family rejection, and targeted violence.
• Asylum seekers often carry layers of trauma and exploitation from their home country into the migration process, making them uniquely susceptible to further abuse if detained upon arrival.

Advocacy and Implications

• Galíndez’s case mirrors that of Andry Hernández Romero, another Venezuelan LGBTQ+ migrant who was deported after being held in substandard conditions.
• Advocates are currently demanding the release of Galíndez and a fair, transparent evaluation of her asylum claim, arguing that the detention system should not become a source of additional harm for those seeking safety from persecution.