The answer to whether somewhere is “safe” for refugees to return to is not the same for everyone.
In this episode, you’ll hear Jasmin Lilian Diab clarify, that when people consider, “is it safe?”, they are actually asking, “can I really live there?”.
She is talking specifically about the case of Syria, where, since the Assad regime fell and the “transitional government” came to power in 2025, there has been much talk about the return of those who fled the country.
You’ll hear Jasmin speak with Lena Richter about what return means specifically for LGBT QI+ Syrian refugees, when for many, Syria was never a safe home, even before the war.
Jasmin talks about the constant calculation that many queer Syrians must make in their everyday lives, even out of the country, where “hyper visibility” can risk violence. She also gives examples from her research about how queer refugees build community, and imagine futures of dignity and belonging.
Jasmin Lilian Diab is the Director of the Institute for Migration Studies at the Lebanese American University and an Assistant Professor and Coordinator of Migration Studies in the Department of Communication, Mobility and Identity at the same university. She is also the winner of the 2026 Best Paper Award” from IMISCOE’s Standing Committee on Gender and Sexuality in Migration Studies (“GenSeM”). You can find the link to the paper in the show notes.
Show notes:
Dr. Jasmin Lilian Diab won the 2025 “Best Paper Award” from IMISCOE’s Standing Committee on Gender and Sexuality in Migration Studies (“GenSeM”). Her paper is called “Who Syria was Never Safe For: Displacement, Return and Queer Syrian Futures Beyond Assad”: https://doi.org/10.1080/00918369.2025.2585318
She would like to acknowledge the fifty queer Syrian refugees who generously shared their experiences, trust, and time. Their voices and lived realities made this research possible. She would also like to acknowledge the Lebanese LGBTQI+ organizations and community advocates whose work continues to provide critical support to queer refugees.