AsylumConnect

Katie Sgarro is co-founder and executive director of AsylumConnect, a nonprofit providing the world's first tech resource platform for those fleeing persecution due to their sexual orientation or gender identity. 

For their work on AsylumConnect, Katie was named to the Clinton Foundation’s CGI U Alumni Honor Roll of social innovators (2017) and a Washington Post’s WP BrandStudio Influencer (2018). In 2019, they became a Roddenberry Fellow and joined Urban Justice Center’s Social Justice Accelerator. They are also a member of the Forbes 30 Under 30 Class of 2020 (Law & Policy). They have been a featured speaker on LGBTQ+ rights and public good technology, and their work has appeared in national outlets including The HuffPost, Teen Vogue, Forbes, The Clinton Foundation’s “Why Am I Telling You This?” Podcast, The Advocate, The Hill, and NowThis.

It is still illegal to be gay in 70 countries. From leaving their home country to resettlement, it is a matter of life-or-death for persecuted LGBTQ+ people to be able to easily identify and connect with legitimate and LGBTQ+ affirming lawyers and other direct service providers. Launched in 2016 in the U.S., the “AsylumConnect Catalog'' is the first resource website and mobile app designed for the tens of thousands of people fleeing persecution due to sexual orientation or gender identity each year. LGBTQ+ asylum seekers and other LGBTQ+ people in need use AsylumConnect as a free 24/7 digital one-stop-shop to meet all of their critical human needs, including: housing, food, hygiene/clothing, legal, medical, mental health, translation, education and employment services. 

When AsylumConnect reaches scale, every LGBTQ+ person will know where it is safe to go for help regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity, immigration status or income level.

It is still illegal to be gay in 70 countries. An estimated 400 million LGBTQ people face the risk of criminal imprisonment due to their LGBTQ identity. As a result, every year, tens of thousands are forced to flee their home countries due to anti-LGBTQ persecution. 

• In the U.S., an estimated 5% of asylum claims are filed by those fleeing anti-LGBTQ persecution, suggesting over 50,000 currently pending LGBTQ claims 

• In Canada, the rate of LGBTQ asylum claims has reached its highest mark in 27 years

• The European Union (EU) receives at least 10,000 LGBTQ asylum claims every year 

The challenge for many LGBTQ asylum seekers is that discrimination continues even in these “safe” havens. Health care facilities, shelters, legal opportunities, and the wider social services sector can be unsafe and biased. Prejudice from fellow non-LGBTQ asylum seekers, immigration judges and translators is rampant. As a result, LGBTQ asylum seekers struggle to access legitimate local services and support, and face increased risk of detention, homelessness, and homophobic or transphobic behavior when accessing critical social services. Many are forced to give up on their asylum claim and face deportation to their dangerous home country. 

Our mission is to facilitate the safe navigation of people fleeing persecution due to their sexual orientation or gender identity. We provide the world’s first tech resource platform designed for those fleeing persecution due to their sexual orientation or gender identity. LGBTQ+ asylum seekers and other LGBTQ+ people in need (including undocumented LGBTQ+ immigrants and homeless LGBTQ+ youth) use our free technology to find verified LGBTQ+ affirming and immigrant friendly legal, medical, mental health and social services in seconds, 24/7. Attorneys also use our free tech resource platform to easily gather trusted verified medical, mental health and social service referrals for LGBTQ+ clients.  

AsylumConnect is currently live in 25 U.S. states and Canada. For holistic impact, the organization also offers translated resource pages for LGBTQ+ asylum seekers and refugees who are in Mexico and those who are still in transit to a safer destination country. Today, thousands use AsylumConnect to find verified safe LGBTQ+ affirming and immigrant friendly services in seconds, 24/7.

At AsylumConnect, we serve persecuted and marginalized LGBTQ+ people who are often navigating multiple marginalized identities, such as: LGBTQ+, immigrant, and person of color. Our tech product (the world's first tech resource platform for those fleeing persecution due to their sexual orientation or gender identity) is specifically designed to the address needs of the most vulnerable members of the LGBTQ+ community including those seeking asylum, the undocumented, those facing deportation, those experiencing homelessness and non-native English speakers. 

Our resource website and mobile app include the following features: 

• Tailored Verification Process: all resources listed are verified to be 1) active, 2) LGBTQ+ friendly and 3) immigrant friendly by trained volunteers
• Anonymity: designed to protect users' privacy online
• Search Filters: easily filter out services that require specific documentation (medical insurance, proof of age/income/residence, or a referral)
• Translation: available in over 100 languages 

AsylumConnect’s volunteers, board members and advisors include LGBTQ immigrants and asylees from Mexico, Russia, Egypt, Syria, Nigeria, Malaysia, and Azerbaijan. Our team of UX researchers and designers also conduct regular remote user testing to continue to improve our tech product.   

The initial idea for the AsylumConnect Catalog came from co-founder Sy’s personal experience seeking LGBTQ+ asylum in America. Despite access to technology, upon arrival in the U.S., Sy struggled to know where it was safe to go for help as a gay immigrant to meet his most basic human needs, from finding legitimate pro bono legal aid to LGBTQ affirming health care, mental health support, housing and relevant educational opportunities. Sy then met Katie Sgarro at the University of Pennsylvania in 2013 and told them about his own personal struggle to find safe resources during his asylum journey. Coming from a conservative background, the feeling of not being able to live authentically deeply resonated with Katie. During their senior year at Penn, the two friends joined forces to co-found AsylumConnect to extend a comprehensive digital lifeline to other persecuted and marginalized LGBTQ people. Through extensive user testing and a comprehensive pilot in Seattle, WA (2016), co-founders Sy and Katie confirmed technology’s potential to fill this clear information gap. 

In November 2017, after running the organization as a volunteer executive director for years, Katie became AsylumConnect’s first full-time salaried executive directory in January 2019 via The Roddenberry Foundation's Roddenberry Fellowship. 

I felt my palms sweat as I nervously glanced around the classroom. A monk stood at the blackboard, equating homosexuality to bestiality and necrophilia. His words, sharp as knives to me, were blunt instruments to the surrounding faces, used merely to convey the severity of the aforementioned “sins.” Shame washed over me. As I pretended to be fascinated by the chips in the wooden exterior of my desk, I silently marveled at how easily my peers seemed to accept our teacher’s words. Oblivious to my discomfort, they vigorously scribbled each homophobic thought into their notebooks to ensure an “A.”  

I vowed, once again, to never “come out.”

6 years later at the University of Pennsylvania I met Sy and we co-founded AsylumConnect.

As my own story began to intersect with those I encountered for my work on AsylumConnect, the organization became a chance for self-redemption and a rare opportunity to help ensure other LGBTQ people find the safety to live authentically. With this transformation, silence was no longer an option. 

My experience denying my own LGBTQ identity for a decade continues to drive me today to ensure other LGBTQ people find the safety to live freely.

I’ve led AsylumConnect for the past 5 years in establishing the world's first tech resource platform designed for those fleeing persecution due to sexual orientation or gender identity. 

In my role as the co-founder and executive director of AsylumConnect, I have built a diverse volunteer team, governing board and advisory board, hired our first staff, established key partnerships, secured coverage in national media outlets, won numerous awards for outstanding contribution in social impact, raised $250K+ in seed funding, piloted five iterations of the world's first tech resource platform designed for people fleeing persecution due to their sexual orientation or gender identity, and grew the number of U.S. users to over 25K. 

As stated above, my personal experience denying my own LGBTQ identity for a decade is what continues to drive me today to ensure other LGBTQ people find the safety to live freely. 

AsylumConnect began with a loss. When my co-founder and I were notified that we were not selected as recipients of the University of Pennsylvania’s President’s Engagement Prizes (a $100K grant for graduating seniors to pursue social impact projects), we were faced with two choices: abandon AC or figure out a way to continue our project without initial funding. Thankfully, we chose the latter.

I deferred my acceptance to Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health to focus on advancing AsylumConnect. After graduation, we worked to refine our proposal. In August 2015, only months after we had lost the competition, our improved proposal won the Millennium Campus Conference's (MCC15) Millennium Peace Prize at the United Nations. 

Today, we are a full-fledged 501(c)(3) nonprofit. 

As the winner of the MCC15 Millennium Peace Prize, a prize celebrating youth activism advancing cultures of peace, I launched the “#AsylumConnect: In Pursuit of Happiness, Freedom and Safety” Global Peace Campaign at the United Nations Headquarters in NYC in August 2015 to 500+. Supported by MCN and The MCJ/Amelior Foundation, this prize presented me with the opportunity to advocate for LGBTQ equality on an international stage. 

During the 2015-2016 academic year, in partnership with MCN, I co-curated and led monthly, two-hour, interactive webinars to keep global student leaders engaged in the campaign. Throughout the year, this campaign engaged over 40 global campaign members. This campaign allowed me to raise awareness for AsylumConnect, LGBTQ asylum seekers, and global LGBTQ rights. Webinar guest speakers included: Cheryl Contee (CEO/Co­-Founder, Fission Strategy and Attentive.ly), Sammie Rayner (Founder/COO, HandUp), and Justin Renfro (Program Manager, Kiva U.S. Zip program).

AsylumConnect is the world’s first and only digital resource platform designed to address the holistic needs of persecuted and marginalized LGBTQ+ people. 

The service model for LGBTQ+ resettlement as well as the broader direct service model for marginalized LGBTQ+ populations have traditionally prioritized in-person direct support, especially legal aid, over technological innovation. In addition to legal help, LGBTQ+ asylum seekers and other marginalized LGBTQ+ people must also secure legitimate LGBTQ+ affirming housing, medical aid, mental health care, community support, education and employment services, and more. 

AsylumConnect aims to produce systemic change through complementing and enhancing the crucial work of existing direct legal service providers in this space (e.g. Immigration Equality, LGBT Asylum Project, Oasis Legal Services, HIAS). For example, nonprofit lawyers, as well as corporate attorneys and law students working on pro bono cases use AsylumConnect’s free technology to efficiently gather verified medical, mental health, and social service referrals for LGBTQ+ clients. Legal nonprofits also use AsylumConnect to effectively advertise their services directly to potential clients. 

Value proposition: For LGBTQ+ asylum seekers and other marginalized LGBTQ+ people (as well as the attorneys working with them) who need to find safe service referrals, AsylumConnect is a 24/7 digital one-stop-shop that provides free, on-demand access to verified information on all of the safe local legal, medical, mental health and social services available to them unlike uncurated, unverified and potentially unsafe referrals offered by large search engines (e.g. Google, Yelp) and non-LGBTQ+ focused resource directories (e.g. USAHello, RefAid, One Degree, Aunt Bertha). 

Since launching in 2016, AsylumConnect’s free technology has reached over 30,000 unique users in 160 unique countries. So far, we've connected over 25,000 unique users in the U.S. to verified* LGBTQ+ friendly and immigrant friendly services. The majority of our user base (70%) is in the U.S. (top cities: NYC, San Francisco, Washington D.C., and L.A.). 

*Prior to inclusion in our resource app, trained volunteers verify that each direct service provider is: 1) active, 2) LGBTQ+ friendly, and 3) accessible to asylum seekers. Our volunteers also re-verify each direct service provider at least once every 6 months for maximum user safety and quality control. 

In five years, we hope to connect over 250K yearly users to verified safe LGBTQ+ and immigrant friendly services.

YR 1: 

-Scale free tech resource platform from 25 to 35 U.S. states and across key  Canadian provinces with the most asylum claims (QC, ON, BC)

-Grow yearly active users from 12K+ in 2019 to 20K+ in 2020 

-Release new native bilingual (English and Spanish) version of our free tech resource platform for LGBTQ asylum seekers in Mexico 

-Pilot Junior Board of young professionals program in NYC 

-Raise $220K+; 1 full-time staff, 2 part-time staff and 1 paid fellowship

YR 5: 

-Scale free tech resource platform to cover all 50 U.S. states and 10 Canadian provinces

-Scale free tech resource platform to destination countries in Western Europe 

-Expand Junior Board to 13 cities (generate $390K+ in net program income) 

-Raise $1M+; increase team to 5 full-time staff and 3 part-time staff 

One of AsylumConnect's primary obstacles is responding efficiently to shifts in federal LGBTQ and immigration policy. 

As an adaptable LGBTQ-focused technology solution, AsylumConnect is uniquely well-positioned to respond efficiently to rapid changes in public health as well as shifts in federal immigration policy and attacks on LGBTQ+ rights. For example, we have expanded our resource app’s legal subcategories to connect LGBTQ+ immigrants with pro bono legitimate legal representation as quickly as possible. Our app now allows users to easily find verified LGBTQ+ friendly attorneys who can help with not only the affirmative asylum process but also fighting deportation proceedings, Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS), and from within immigration detention. We have also added verified subcategories of support specifically for trans and non-binary immigrants, including: “Legal - Name and Gender Change,” “Medical - Trans Health,” “Mental Health - Trans Support Groups,” and “Hygiene and Clothing - Gender-Affirming Items”. 

Similarly, in direct response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we’re adding new alert messages directly to our free resource website and mobile app to quickly communicate to our users how verified services listed are responding to COVID-19 (e.g. temporary closure, shifting to remote services, remaining open during the pandemic) in real-time.   

For a list of partners and supporters, visit our website.

Our financial model consists of four core pillars:

1. Individual Giving

2. Corporate Giving 

3. Foundation Grants

4. Earned Revenue (via online store sales)

We have a minimum threshold of 50% for our ratio of previous year ending cumulative surplus balance to next year expenses. 

We hope to grow this number to approach 100% over time to ensure AsylumConnect's long-term financial sustainability. 

We’re focused on diversifying AsylumConnect’s revenue streams to ensure our long-term financial sustainability, including two new programs:

Junior Board Program for Young Professionals 

In January 2020, we launched our inaugural Junior Board in NYC. Our NYC Junior Board already includes 19 diverse and young professionals from McKinsey, Twitter, Google, UN Women, PwC, Jones Day, and more. 

The Junior Board program empowers young professionals (ages 21 to 40), with a focus on those from historically underrepresented communities in business and executive leadership positions (such as LGBTQ+, immigrants, women and racial/ethnic minorities). Members play a critical role in our fundraising and development efforts, and connect with other like-minded young professionals. Membership requires annual membership dues ($1K/yr), attendance at monthly local meetings, and planning fundraisers to benefit AsylumConnect. Local monthly meetings include networking and professional development opportunities (such as a guest speakers series) and direct programming to help members develop tangible skills ranging from fundraising to advocacy. 

We plan to replicate our Junior Board program across America to build a national movement and mobilize thousands of diverse young professionals who are passionate about LGBTQ+ and immigrant rights to take action.

Corporate Partnerships Program

We hope to secure additional corporate donations during 2020 and beyond through AsylumConnect’s new formalized corporate partnership program. We will also leverage our Junior Board members’ professional networks to secure new corporate support. Junior Board members will work to infuse AsylumConnect’s message of diversity, inclusion, and acceptance into corporate powerhouses across the country, turning their employers into valuable allies. 

Total Philanthropic Funding Raised (FYs 2015 - July 2020): $271,413.20 

Grants: $188,413.00

For a list of funders, see our website.

Individual Giving: $72,858.28

Corporate Donations: $10,000.00

1. Foursquare (Winner of the 2019 Foursquare For Good Challenge): $10,000.00

Earned Revenue (*online store sales): $141.92