A gay, HIV-positive man has been sitting inside an ICE detention center for over a month, despite having filed for political asylum.
30-year-old Denis Davydov arrived in the United States from Russia legally in 2014. He overstayed his six-month tourist visa but applied for political asylum within the one-year deadline, citing the the peril LGBTQ people currently face in his homeland.
“He was awaiting his asylum interview, had a valid employment authorization and A-number, and had no criminal record,” Sergey Piskunov, who works with RUSA LGBT, a group for Russian-speaking members of the LGBTQ community, says.
Last month, Davydov was arrested by U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Miami on his way back from a trip to the U.S. Virgin Islands. Since then, he has been kept at the Krome Detention Center. He is the first known HIV-positive gay asylum-seeker being detained under the Trump Administration’s Draconian immigration policies.
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“He’s a gay man and HIV-positive,” Piskunov says. “Russia is not the best place for either of those and he’s a combination of both.”
Piskunov says Davydov has been receiving his HIV medications in detention, but he has not been given access to a doctor.
“This is one of the reasons we really want to get him out of there,” Piskunov urges, adding that Davydov has “developed a fungal infection (possibly thrush) and has not been able to receive medication for it.”
He also faces harassment and homophobic slurs from other detainees.
“They have money for war in Ukraine, Crimea, Syria,” Piskunov says. “They have money for all these military expenses. But they don’t have money for the medical system. And they don’t care.”
A Facebook page has been launched, providing regular updates on his condition and details on his bond hearing, which is scheduled for May 8.
o.codone
The title of this article implies that President Trump has an immigration policy that detains gay people BECAUSE they are HIV positive. This is not true. It’s just fake news from people who know better and keep pushing bulllshit to advance their anti-Trump, butt-hurt political narrative. Yeah, I mean you. Please realize that it is precisely this distortion of journalism that caused voters to cast votes against lies and FOR Trump. There is a war on for news and the media that tells half truths or advocates pure falsehoods will only make MORE Trump voters. So gentlemen, if you want MORE TRUMP, keep it up. Otherwise, stop this.
Giancarlo85
You are still a lying drug addict screwball. Do you not even know how to read? And if you were against lies, you wouldn’t idiotically have voted for Trump in the first place.
Someone like you has no business discussing what reality and truth mean, when you by your own admittance are a drug user and were dishonorably discharged from the military because of that.
In other words, you don’t have a shred of credibility.
And enjoy your unpopularly backed (lost by three million votes) leader. With even Senator Chaffetz saying that Mike Flynn broke the law, you know the beans will be spilled.
Trump was elected on the basis of fake news. People, like yourself, were stupid enough to believe it. By the way, will you get any of the tax cut for multinational corporations that Trump wants? Same corporations responsible for outsourcing… Surprise surprise.
And do you want to go work in a factory for Ivanka Trump’s clothing line? Heard those workers in China were making $62 a week, 80+ hours a week.
You see the truth is something you have no clue about.
Giancarlo85
By the way, with his approval ratings in the toilet bowl and his own party turning on him (he has accomplished zero), he isn’t gaining new followers.
Lies are all you on the right have and it will catch up with you real fast!
Bellerophon69
The banner headline, “First HIV-positive gay asylum-seeker detained under Trump’s Draconian immigration policies” does NOT say that it is the reason for his detention, it merely states he is being detained by Trumps draconian policies; the fact that he is the “First HIV-positive gay asylum-seeker” is a descriptor of his status, it does not implies that is the reason he is being detained. Except perhaps in your butthurt feelings about any criticism leveled at your “Yellow Cheese Idol”.
Heywood Jablowme
“Please realize that it is precisely this distortion of journalism that caused voters to cast votes against lies and FOR Trump.”
Hey, Trump voters keep changing their story. I thought their story was that Hillary called them “deplorables” and that hurt their feelings. The little candy-azzed snowflakes.
natekerchel
Yeah – I mean YOU trump troll. As usual you wheel out the tired cry of ‘fake news’ to justify another example of trump’s inhumane policies. Again I will remind the mathematically challenged – trump did not win the popular vote – not by millions. So you can stop pretending he did, and the most compulsive liar in the USA today is trump himself.
Why is this man still in detention? Why is there no access to a doctor? It is difficult to make absolute claims because there will never be any direct evidence of homophobia. However, circumstantial evidence and a pattern of behaviour is enough to draw a conclusion. Many people in our court system are found guilty on such a basis. If you think trump will get re-elected then you are living in the same crazy world he lives in. He can barely string a sentence together right now – just imagine how much worse he will be in a few years time – assuming he survives that long as the fake ‘President’.
Giancarlo85
I would also suggest someone check out all the townhalls even in red states. Republicans are even refusing to hold them. The upswell of support for democrats should scare the oxyman. It is so bad even Montana has a competitive race. A GOP billionaire versus a guy who is more left wing than Bernie Sanders (Rob Quist).
Trump is seeing the country turn on him for his rampant nepotism, corruption and unconstitutional actions (including on immigration). Fake news huh? The writing is on the wall. 75 million voted against him in 2016 and that is reality.
Paco
I know it sounds cold, but we can’t really afford to take in people with an expensive lifetime illness when we have our own to keep alive. Most people with hiv need assistance with the cost of their healthcare over their lifetime.
Giancarlo85
Uh huh. Bet you like the GOP too taking away health care from people.
I am sorry but no. Health care is a human right. So yeah you are cold and illogical.
Giancarlo85
BTW, I am sure Trump has spent more on his trips to Mar-a-lago. So cut the crap.
IDoNotHaveToAgreeWithYou
You are right Paco. Americans that need treatment have trouble getting it. We can’t afford to take in the whole world. People like Giancarlo85 sure aren’t going to pay for them.
Giancarlo85
iDontHaveAmIndSoICantThink, I am taxpayer and a citizen. I’d be willing to raise taxes on corporations and cut the military budget… We could have a better healthcare system with single payer by the way.
Oh and do you see any light? Must be quite dark sticking your head up Trump’s butt?
Giancarlo85
BTW. ACA helps people get treatment. Why do you rethuglicans want to take that away? You even want to destroy preexisting condition coverage… Wow. You want people to die.
mhoffman953
@Giancarlo85
Even though you’re getting off topic, our country would not have better healthcare is we had a single payer system. Wait times would increase drastically and people would die while waiting for care because we wouldn’t the resources.
Additionally, it is not financially feasible. There are 300,000,000 people approximately in the US. According to Forbes magazine, in 2015, the average health care cost of a single person is $10,000 / year (counting what the individual pays and what insurance pays). Making the government absorb this cost, it results in an estimated cost of $3 trillion EVERY YEAR.
As of 2015, the US government spends $3.8 trillion every year on total spending. So where would this new $3 trillion per year cost come from? Higher taxes?
If we taxed incomes of $1 million or more per year at a rate of 100%, it would result in just over $600 billion in tax revenue – still doesn’t pay the $3 trillion yearly cost. Plus, what would happen to the uber rich if we taxed all income of $1 million or more at 100%? They would leave the US and move to tax havens in the world.
Your focus should be on finding ways to lower healthcare costs and not granting single payer / higher tax plans because they will fall on their own weight and devastate our economy.
ChrisK
Yeah, but they didn’t factor in the much lower costs that are more efficient like getting rid of the profiteering insurance companies and regulating the pharmaceuticals.
“$592 billion would be saved annually by cutting the administrative waste of some 1,300 private health insurers ($476 billion) and reducing pharmaceutical prices to European levels ($116 billion)”.
mhoffman953
@ChrisK OK, let’s be very generous and say they can cut administrative costs by $700 billion every year, that’s still $2.3 trillion per year that needs to be generated via tax revenue. We don’t have it unless we cut our existing budget by over 60%, then I’m sure the pharmaceutical companies will just increase their R&D costs claiming increased demand, so we’re back to where we started
sydboy007
@Giancarlo85 if it could be organised that all health care costs would be shared between you and DD for his lifetime and this guarantee would show him to gain asylum would you say yes?
It’s easy to say yes when it’s other people’s money, but the true test is when you’re willing to pony up your own.
asby
This sucks and it sounds like the guy is doing everything he is supposed to do…But why would you leave the country in the first place? My gay ass wouldn’t be going anywhere unless I was 150% sure I was able too. Especially with what that Dump is trying to do with immigration.
mhoffman953
Illegal immigrants cannot travel abroad without proper documentation or LPR verification. They don’t check for this on the way to the Virgin Islands but they most definitely check for this on the way back since many drug and gun smugglers use the Virgin Islands to bring these items in the US.
If his Visa ran out in 2014 and he was undocumented, I assume he applied for permanent resident status. Under this statute, it can take between 6 months – 1 year for your application to be processed. Why in 2017 (3 years later) is he not completed with the process and why is he not consulting with his attorney regarding traveling? He’s from California but has visited Florida and then the Virgin Islands and then returned. If he didn’t visit the Virgin Islands, then he’d probably be safe.
Also, his sexual orientation and HIV status have no bearing on the law. We can’t give someone a pass because of their medical condition. If we do, it creates a precedent where we would have to medically treat all migrants who find their way onto our soil which is not our responsibility or financially feasible.
Will L
These are the very issues that jumped out at me while I was reading this.
MediaGuy
I haven’t heard anyone address the fundamental assertion here. The headline reads as if President Trump has an immigration policy that excludes people with HIV. There is no such policy. My assertion is that this is FAKE news and basically bullshit designed to malign the President and make gays look like victims. But nobody has addressed that. Particularly that immigrant ghetto trash Gio.
Browell79
His sexuality most definitely has a bearing on our Laws. We take in political refugees who are persecuted by their Governments on the basis of their sexuality, I.e. Russia and Uganda to name a couple. His medical condition is the basis for him to not sit in a detention center since he is not receiving proper medical care just like prisoners in the US with extreme medical conditions that the nails can’t monitor are not locked in jails.
ErikO
More fake news. Obama had the same immigration policy not to allow people who are HIV+ to emigrate here into the United States, oh and he also deported a record number of illegal immigrants.
KaiserVonScheiss
Trump does not have a draconian anti-gay immigration policy. The article is misleading. I believe there is a policy about immigrants with HIV, but that policy was not adopted by Trump.
surreal33
Like it or not the United States can’t save the world. Before we can save and treat immigrants Americans who can’t get sex education, HIV prevention, and treatment must come first.
alphabet55
As someone who has worked with asylum seekers, let me just say that flying on an airplane is almost the stupidest thing you can do. It’s like asking to be detained. Without a valid visa, you can be picked up and detained at any time. The trick is to lie low until your application is granted. Being gay and/or HIV positive isn’t the reason he was detained. He was detained because he didn’t have a valid visa. He would have been picked up under the Obama administration too.
Heywood Jablowme
Yes – that occurred to me too.
Heywood Jablowme
Russian immigrants and refugees are all criminals anyway. But maybe he’s the first one who has a legitimate job. Maybe he’s unique.
MediaGuy
So, there seems to be a consensus. This article is bullshit, and it’s time to remove it. You discredit yourself every moment this “article” remains posted. And, let this be a lesson to Queerty, if you put this fake news bullshit up, your audience is gonna call it out for the fake crap that it is. Yup, nobody’s buying the progressive extremist narrative you are advancing. It’s what I told you many many times already. The more Trump-hating you post the more your audience turns on you, and the more Trump you’re going to get. Everybody loves (Trump) the underdog. I’m just watching the left commit suicide.
fur_hunter
It is truly sad that with the knowledge of what is happening to gay people in Russia, this man who deserves asylum status is treated as he is and has been. The problem with immigration in the country is the screening process. Example: One of the questions on the immigration entry form is: ‘Are you a terrorist?’ I swear to God only morons work in the governmental offices. They are total incompetents. What kind of an imbecilic question is that? What Dumb@$$ came up with that question and who allowed it to remain on the form? FIRE THOSE IDIOTS!!! The whole immigration system needs MAJOR fixing so those who SHOULD be allowed in, are the ones that actually are. ‘Are you a terrorist?’ Can you absolutely believe it? MORONS.
ErikO
Do you plan to pay for his expensive medications and expensive health care for the rest of his life?
mhoffman953
@fur_hunter I agree that our immigration process is a joke and needs better vetting of who is entering our borders, which is why we should halt immigration until we can figure out a better way to vet these people.
However, ErikO has a point. You can’t say “this man deserves asylum status”. What makes him more deserving than someone else? There are 65 million refugees by definition in the world and that doesn’t account for people who just want to migrate to the US. Are we supposed to take in every refugee and asylum seeker just because? How will our country sustain this over a decade?
girldownunder
The public is being fed a diet of lies. Lies, from the people at the “front-lines”.
Lies, from the various gov’ts.
Lies, from mobile phones in the supposed areas under seize.
It is unfortunate that these sources are ALL possibly skewed.
How do we fight this?
He BGB
I don’t have the time to read the back and forth arguments pro and con the New Guy, but watch the tv series The Handmaid’s Tale, about militants that take over the federal government, make child bearing women concubines, gay men and women are killed (hung on a high wall for display) because they won’t conceive. Pollution has made many women barren or the babies born deformed. The rules are made from the Old Testament Bible! It’s fiction but very real. Evangelicals would watch and say, “so? What’s the problem”?
Chris
While I agree that traveling by air while waiting for the processing of your asylum bid’s not the smartest thing to do, I am troubled that this individual’s being kept without access to doctors. And if he has thrush, then I wonder about the efficacy of his HIV meds.
And yes, if his asylum bid is approved, then we do have an obligation to treat him the same way as we treat any other immigrant to this country. And that includes access to our health care system.