this post was submitted on 19 Jan 2026
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Ter Apel, a small, unassuming Dutch town near the German border, is a place tourists rarely have on their itinerary. There are no lovely old windmills, no cannabis-filled coffee shops and on a recent visit it was far too early for tulip season.

When foreigners end up there, it is for one reason: to claim asylum at the Netherlands’ biggest refugee camp, home to 2,000 desperate people from all around the world.

Many of the American refugees, like Jane-Michelle Arc, a 47-year-old software engineer from San Francisco, are transgender. In April last year she flew into Schiphol airport in Amsterdam and, sobbing, asked a customs officer how to claim asylum. “And they laughed because: what’s this big dumb American doing here asking about asylum? And then they realised I was serious.”

Arc said the US had become such a hostile environment for trans people that she had stopped leaving the house “unless there was an Uber waiting outside”. She said she had been abused on the street and using the ladies’ toilets, and resolved to leave the country after a frightening incident when she feared a woman was going to run her over with her truck.

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[–] cygnus@lemmy.ca 7 points 46 minutes ago (2 children)

Canada should really do more in this regard.

[–] floofloof@lemmy.ca 1 points 11 minutes ago

It's not clear how long Canada can fend off the far right, both internally and from the USA. I hope we can survive but there are too many damn Conservatives around.

[–] HellsBelle@sh.itjust.works 3 points 42 minutes ago

We should garbage Bill C-2 then.

[–] otp@sh.itjust.works 9 points 1 hour ago

Congratulations to the far-right. You're winning.

[–] Grimy@lemmy.world -1 points 47 minutes ago* (last edited 35 minutes ago) (2 children)

I know it's a tough time but I have trouble imagining it being that bad in SF. I know the situation isn't ideal but there are only so many places available for refugees each year and some people applying are actually expecting death or worse if they go back.

Seems to be a bit tone deaf imo, we aren't at that point yet, at least not in San Fransisco. I would be livid if I was from somewhere with an actual civil war, where whole villages are getting wiped, and see my spot get taken by someone from Cali.

I want to be clear I think there is a problem with how transgender folk are being treated, but I think the asylum system has a lot of bigger ones to deal with and its already struggling with those. I wish other countries stepped up and offered easier immigration if you're transgender or something. This just feels like the wrong way to do it.

[–] pooberbee@lemmy.ml 3 points 8 minutes ago

I think the tone deaf thing here is you telling trans people, who are being actively targeted by an increasingly fascist goverment and conservative media, that it's not bad enough yet for them to leave.

Any person who wants to leave and has the means to leave should absolutely leave by whatever means, and your judgment of them is of no value.

If you have a problem with worldwide asylum quotas, maybe take that up with a foreign government or something. People who are just trying to survive and make the best decisions they can in an increasingly high-stakes situation should disregard everything you've said and continue doing whatever they want, and you should support their ability to do so.

[–] Assassassin@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 7 minutes ago

sees people choosing to live in camps rather than the US

"But I'm having a tough time imagining it being that bad"

Yeah bro, people typically give up their entire lives and move halfway across the world for minor inconveniences. You would have criticized gays for leaving Germany in 1934.