The global refugee regime has shifted under our feet. Over the last forty years, international asylum practices have expanded to include the queer and trans displaced. At least thirty-seven countries now recognize LGBTIQ refugees on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity, with some states providing specialized support. Yet amid this expansion, backlash has intensified against refugee protection as well as the hard-earned rights of LGBTIQ people. In this disquieting context, the protection of LGBTIQ refugees remains partial and exclusionary.
The Way Out examines the complexities of queer and trans displacement around the world. Centering personal narratives of LGBTIQ refugees, the book exposes the shortcomings of an international protection regime that is unable to address the harms that drive displacement. Rebecca Buxton and Samuel Ritholtz's analysis of the stakes of queer and trans inclusion in accounts of displacement justice offers a vibrant example of theory brought to life.
Rebecca Buxton is Lecturer in Social and Political Philosophy at the University of Bristol.
Samuel Ritholtz is Research Fellow in Politics at All Souls College, University of Oxford.
"From familial homophobia to climate change, LGBTIQ people like me lose our homes for political reasons and yet must find individual solutions. In a global landscape that is rapidly deteriorating for refugees, Rebecca Buxton and Samuel Ritholtz reveal how queers in forced departure are vulnerable on every human front. Particularly impressive is the reproducing of actual asylum interrogation, snapshots of queer lives in refugee camps, and the authors' demand that we reimagine what family means. Their vision of queer family reunion as an end goal of sanctuary is moving and enlightening."—Sarah Schulman, author of The Fantasy and Necessity of Solidarity
"The Way Out is a powerful and devastating account of the challenges that queer and trans refugees face in finding safety and a moral condemnation of a world that exacerbates their vulnerabilities as they try to do so. Buxton and Ritholtz center the experiences of queer and trans refugees over the course of their too-often-failed journeys to safety, and in so doing highlight the indignities faced by all refugees as they beg for compassion and, indeed, justice from a world that increasingly seems indifferent to their plight."—Patti Tamara Lenard, author of Democracy and Exclusion
"A vital and thought-provoking book that invites a reimagining of queer and trans displacement. By centering lived experience and exposing the social and structural forces that shape the search for refuge, The Way Out questions conventional protection frameworks and calls for more inclusive, relational approaches. A must-read for anyone working on migration, LGBTIQ rights, or social justice."—Graeme Reid, UN Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity
"The Way Out brings together lived experiences, theory, and a commitment to justice in a powerful and groundbreaking exploration of queer and trans experiences of forced displacement, offering not only analysis but vision. A vital read for anyone interested in migration, human rights, and the transformative potential of queer thought."—Bridget Anderson, Professor of Migration, Mobilities, and Citizenship, University of Bristol
"What would it look like to reimagine justice for refugees from the perspective of the countless queer people forced from their homes worldwide? Buxton and Ritholtz tackle this vital question with precision and vigor, making the lives of queer refugees central to theorizations of how to revolutionize besieged and broken governance systems that heap harm on those in need of help."—Megan Bradley, Professor of Political Science, McGill University
“This book is a must-read for asylum lawyers, particularly those representing queer asylum-seekers. It offers unique insights into the lives of queer refugees before, during, and after they experience the asylum determination system. It will improve the work of asylum lawyers and the lives of those who seek their counsel.”—Stephen Meili, James H. Michael Chair in International Human Rights Law, University of Minnesota Law School
256 pp.5.5 x 8.5
9780520391758$95.00|£80.00Hardcover
Jan 2026