The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday found that asylum seekers who flee persecution based on their sexual orientation should not be expected to reveal their sexual orientation during interviews with government officials that take place within hours of their arrival at the airport.

"People who flee persecution based on their sexual orientation often leave countries where it is not safe to reveal their sexual identity or where they were harmed because of it," said Jonathan Eoloff, legal coordinator of the National Immigrant Justice Center's National Asylum Partnership on Sexual Orientation. "This decision acknowledges that it is unreasonable to expect someone to discuss the harm they suffered because of their sexuality, especially with a government official in a foreign country as soon as they arrive at the airport."

Read the National Immigrant Justice Center's press release on the decision here.