LGBTQ+ in Ukraine: Tales of wartime horror and helping hands

The Ukraine-based LGBTQ+ and feminist advocacy group Insight has been supplying LGBTQ+ people and at-risk women with basic safety and health needs during the Russian invasion. The stories below illustrate what’s going on.

Insight, founded in 2008, is active in 11 regions of Ukraine. From the first days of the war, their team has:

• Provided legal and psychological support for LGBTQI+ communities and for women;
• Opened two shelters in Lviv and on1 in Chernivtsi (each can host 15-20 people at the time)
• Set up hormone deliveries for trans people to various cities in Ukraine;
• Set up medicine deliveries;
• Set up evacuation logistic for LGBTQ+ people and women to safer locations (EU, Western Ukraine)
• Connected people with host organizations in EU and other countries

They are appealing for financial support to continue the work.

These are the stories of five people they have helped. All of these stories were published with the permission of the storytellers.

Olga, 39, Kramatorsk, lesbian

Anger, despair and devastation are the feelings that the first day of the war.

At first, before sunrise, in the dark, my peaceful city shuddered and trembled from the powerful explosions. Then, at dawn, we had to see with our own eyes enemy missiles flying over high-rise buildings, and then fell rapidly down, causing more and more explosions.

That horrible February morning, almost everyone thought about the safety of family and friends. The next few days passed like crazy. It later became clear that the enemy was intensifying shelling of peaceful homes, leading to numerous casualties among the residents. To survive, we had to escape and go to other, still peaceful cities.

A close person, whose views I share and support, advised me to seek help from the NGO Insight. After discussing the situation with Insight and clarifying some additional information, I was kindly given the opportunity to move and receive temporary shelter in a city as far away from the territory of military aggression as possible. In addition to housing, I was provided food and hygiene products etc.

It is difficult to plan for the future now, as long as the brutal war continues, but I know for a fact that my heart feels boundless gratitude to the sincere and hospitable people of Insight.

Mariana, 34, Zaporizhzhia, lesbian, queer

The day before the war, I hadn’t slept all night and learned about the Russian invasion early in the morning.

I was shocked and started to panic. I ran to my mother’s house to help pack a suitcase and agree on what to do next. I was very scared to think that I could lose loved ones and my cat.

Every day I listened to the sirens and hid in a garage in the basement.

My psychological condition deteriorated. I couldn’t think of anything but war. I listened to the news for hours. I decided to leave when I realized that my life had stopped and that it could end at any moment.

I have been familiar with Insight’s activities for a long time. I learned about the shelter in Lviv and Chernivtsi on the social networks of the Zaporizhzhia branch of the organization. Then I decided to go to the shelter first, then to Poland. In the shelter in Lviv, I was able to rest from a very difficult evacuation from Zaporizhzhia. There was a place to sleep, something to eat and everything you needed. I am very grateful that the cat was let into the shelter!

Diana, trans woman, with Sofia, cis woman — Luhansk and Kharkiv

Diana recalls:

For me, the problems began back in 2014. Over time I had to move from the already occupied territory. These were difficult years due to the lack of my own housing and life away from my hometown.

In the second stage of the war, we encountered the war in Kharkiv. We were temporarily staying with a friend. At first, we thought that Kharkiv would not be bombed so hard. But it quickly became clear that we were wrong. Sirens sounded every two hours, it was scary to go outside. Enemy troops bombed the neighboring areas, and we were afraid to get to the railway station.

In the last days before the evacuation from the city, we hid in the shelter of the subway, looking for a train to leave. We slept on cardboard and concrete floors. It was difficult to leave the city because of the large flow of people. We stayed at the metro station shelter for two days and went to Poltava, where we stayed for four days. After resting from everything, we went to Lviv.

From there we decided to go abroad, although I was worried that there would be problems with documents while crossing the border. My passport is male, but the name has been changed to female. Representatives of Insight accompanied us to the border, where we were met by partners of the Polish organization.

A friend who knew about the work of the Insight shelter in Lviv recommended that we ask that organization for help. I knew about Insight for a long time. It was my first acquaintance in Kyiv.

They helped me with housing and with the migration service, which did not want to issue documents. I was required to confirm my identity, which was difficult to do, because all the data about me remained in the occupied territory.

Now we are in France. Here they helped us with housing. Thank you, Insight, for everything!

Kadi, 26, gay

My first day of the war was strange. I went to bed at about 4 o’clock in the morning. The first explosions took place at about 4:30 and at 6 o’clock. My stepmother shouted from the kitchen to my father, who came to my room to sit at the computer, that Russia had attacked us.

I was awaken by her scream. Fifteen minutes later there were two explosions, five minutes apart.

My first thoughts were “What kind of war? What do you mean? I am sleeping! It’s all a dream! ”

That day we decided that I would go to my grandparents’ and my stepmother’s son would go to my parents.

After almost two weeks of war I went to Chernivtsi.

I was acquainted with the activities of Insight, thanks to an ex-boyfriend, to whom I moved to Lutsk. There is an Insight office in Lutsk and we met different people there.

I am very grateful that Insight has made it possible to live safely in a shelter, providing everything from toilet paper to medication.

When the war is over, I would like to be active in my city to help the LGBTQ + community, and in general to make people’s lives better than they were before and during the war.