Advocacy, press, and country conditions

This section covers QARAVAN’s advocacy and press coverage in 2025, and the country conditions for LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other identities) people in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the Caucasus, which many of our members fled.

Input on city policy

With support from the New York City Commission on Racial Equity, we held discussions on October 4, 13, 20, and 22, with approximately 100 participants. We discussed rights, equality, and participation in city policymaking. We submitted survey responses to the city to inform programs and resource decisions.

Volunteer training

On April 19, volunteers attended a four-hour training on stress and burnout.

Advocacy

In January, we issued a statement opposing the new executive orders. In March and April, we shared posts on trans rights and visibility.

Our Pride theme was “Stand Up for Trans Immigrants’ Rights,” and members joined citywide demonstrations, including on June 14.

In the press

• PinkNews coverage, March
• Gay City News features, May
• CBS News feature, June
• Resisting Project 2025 spotlight, May

Civic participation

QARAVAN was invited to the New York City Mayor’s LGBTQ+ Pride Reception at Gracie Mansion. Our coordinator, Maxim Ibadov, was appointed to Brooklyn Community Board 13, a neighborhood advisory board in New York City.

Country conditions for LGBTQ+ people

In 2025, LGBTQ+ people across Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the Caucasus faced criminalization, censorship, and threats to their safety. These are the conditions many of our members fled.

Georgia

Georgia adopted broad anti-LGBTQ+ legislation in 2024. This remained part of the regional context in 2025.

Kazakhstan

The president signed a ban on so-called “LGBT propaganda” on December 30, 2025, after parliamentary approval in November and December. The law restricted LGBTQ+ expression despite objections from Kazakh and international human rights groups. Its implementation followed in 2026.

Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyzstan adopted restrictions on LGBTQ+ information in 2023. This remained part of the regional context in 2025.

Russia

By the end of 2025, at least 23 criminal “extremism” cases had been opened over LGBTQ+ activity. In November, a Moscow court convicted travel organizer Andrei Kotov posthumously: he had died in custody in December 2024. In December 2025, three people were placed under house arrest for private queer parties, and activist Sasha Kazantseva was sentenced in absentia to nine years. QARAVAN rejects the “extremism” label.

Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan continued to criminalize consensual sexual conduct between men.

Uzbekistan

Article 120 continued to criminalize consensual sexual conduct between men. Human Rights Watch reported that a local rights group documented at least 16 people prosecuted under that article in 2025. Many QARAVAN members are from Uzbekistan.

Our asylum support letters document relevant country conditions and the risks members face if they are deported against their will.

Sources: Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and Kazakhstan’s Adilet legal database. Linked references and evidence limits are in the accompanying source-check document.