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Transgender asylum seeker held in men's facility, denied hormone treatment

Aug 20, 2026 · New York, NY, Venezuela

Transgender asylum seeker held in men's facility, denied hormone treatment

Camila Toro de Paula, a 25-year-old transgender woman from Venezuela, has spent 11 months in a men's federal immigration detention center in Jena, Louisiana, where she says she has been assaulted, threatened and deprived of medical care, including hormone therapy she had received for years. She was arrested in August 2025 during a routine appointment at ICE's New York City office and flown to Louisiana despite her lawyer's objections that the placement would endanger her. She fled Venezuela after suffering childhood abuse, including being raped repeatedly by relatives and stabbed by police in a homophobic attack, and sought asylum in the United States. Immigration officials cited a criminal history that included felony assault and weapons charges, both of which were later dismissed and sealed.

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