Asylum seekers in the U.S. are suing the federal government due to long delays in the application process

Applicants in several cases fled their home countries to avoid persecution based on factors such as sexual orientation and 'oppositional political activities.' Now they're asking the courts for help

A protest in Downtown Los Angeles, summer 2018. (Luke Harold)

A citizen of Azerbaijan now residing in El Cajon, California, is seeking asylum in the U.S. because he is gay and says he faces persecution in his home country, where his partner was fatally stabbed.

A gay Russian citizen currently living in Indio, California, is seeking asylum under similar circumstances.

Another Azerbaijan national wants asylum in the U.S. because he was involved in “oppositional political activities” back home.

All three are part of a growing list of asylum seekers in the U.S. who have filled out I-589 applications “for asylum and withholding of removal.” That waitlist is projected to surpass 1 million by the end of 2024, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, with processing times projected to be about 10 years.

USCIS is also the defendant in many lawsuits that have been filed by asylum seekers who allege that the agency is violating the Immigration and Nationality Act with the indefinite wait times. Two of the main factors for those wait times include the Covid-19 pandemic and a growing number of asylum seekers.

Here is a small sampling of the cases that have been filed in California’s Southern District federal courts, which cover San Diego and Imperial counties.

LGBTQIA+ rights

Russian national Dmitry Andrianov, who lives in Indio, “came to the United States to escape life-threatening persecution and obtain asylum” because he is gay, according to a complaint filed in October. But after submitting his I-589 application for asylum in December 2020, he still has no idea when it will be reviewed, alleges the complaint.

While in Russia, he had been “attacked and assaulted multiple times.”

His complaint adds: