🚨 New publication 🚨 My latest publication is out now in the Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies. It addresses a significant gap in research by examining how the UK refugee status determination process responds to claims based on non-religion and apostasy. www.tandfonline.com/eprint/I8BKA...

New: UNHCR warns government that unqualified adjudicators will undermine the new asylum appeals body — by Jasmine Quiller-Doust

It has been ten years since Jo Cox MP was murdered by a far-right extremist while serving her constituents in Batley and Spen. Today, we pause to remember Jo and her belief that “we have more in common than that which divides us”.

The scenes in Belfast last night were disgraceful. Families were targeted because of their skin colour or country of origin, leaving people frightened, homeless and fearing for their safety. The actions of one individual must never be used to stigmatise an entire community, nationality or faith.

It's #RefugeeWeek next week. Find some free events on our website, including an online cook-along! https://ow.ly/WcXl50Z9TmU#RefugeeWeek

The High Court has found the Home Office acted unlawfully in scrapping accommodation protections for survivors of torture and trafficking — no consultation with specialists, no proper equality assessment, no investigation into consequences. A significant ruling covered in our latest piece by…

📢 EVENT I’m super excited to organise this event for Refugee Week on ‘Courage, Community and Conversation’. If you’re in or around York, do pop in and hear about the amazing work going on for refugees and wider society. 📆 Monday, 15th June ⏰ Fair (10-2); Panel (3-4:30) 📍York

I’ve been wanting to do a Pint of Science for years after going to a local one! Ticked it off earlier this week and was so much fun. It’s not everyday people in the pub want to hear about your research 🤣 #pint26

For Refugee Week 2026, the University of York Migration Network is hosting a day of Courage, Community & Conversation 🌍 Featuring: 🤝 Community stalls and conversations 🗣️ A panel on courage, sanctuary & solidarity Please share with your networks! #RefugeeWeek #RefugeeWeek2026 #courage

#pint26 is in a week! This year we will be in +640 cities Check out this interactive map which lists them all 🗺️📍 bit.ly/pint26world And get all the infos here pintofscience.com Get ready to join the science party! 🦕 🫀👩‍🔬📚🧫🧪🌎🕷️🧬🪨🦴🤖🌴🌺🧠🔭👓⚖️🐳☄️🎼🌆

Looking forward to my Pint of Science 🧬 presentation in York on Wednesday! Believe it or not? Proving what you don’t believe. 🤔 #pint26 @uoy-sociology.bsky.social @uoyevents.bsky.social

New research shows that more people abandoned Labour because they were too tough on immigration - and because of their support for Israel - than because they were too soft on immigration.

Today’s King’s Speech confirmed what we feared: another Immigration and Asylum Bill that will make life harder for people seeking protection in the UK. For over a decade, we've seen new legislation every year, which has failed to fix a broken system. Here’s why this approach makes things worse 🧵

They’re awful, including the filming of hotels housing people seeking asylum 🙄 vile

Take a look at these @pintofscience.uk events taking place at venues around York next week (18-20 May) #pint26 🍻 ☕ 🧠

OMFG I had to go and check that this ACTUALLY happened. Since when does the BBC ever do chyrons with a political party's branding, rather than their own? Not to mention this is during a pre-election campaign purdah. (h/t @iainsol.bsky.social)

I've gone international! 🌏 Listen to me yap on @humanists.bsky.social podcast about how the British asylum system is currently failing people seeking asylum due to leaving their religion ❗ www.youtube.com/watch?v=dK8i...

This week's BBC coverage about fraudulent 'immigration advisers' has sparked concern across the sector. Our full statement can be found on our website, but we've broken it down for you. 🧵

What's not in the news: Over a decade of research has consistently revealed significant flaws in Home Office decision-making for LGBTQI+/sexuality-based asylum claims, raising real concerns about the UK meeting its obligations under the Refugee Convention. Below are some examples:

My thoughts: It's important to highlight that individuals who base their asylum claims on being LGBTQIA+ make up a tiny proportion of overall cases. And even then, more than a third are refused. 🧵 www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Disgusting reporting by BBC using a tiny number of cases to suggest widespread abuse of a system which routinely denies LGBTQIA+ individuals asylum and forces them back into environments of persecution. This article massively distorts the reality of the situation. 1/ www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Twelve countries globally have the death penalty for blasphemy and apostasy (leaving religion). In Pakistan, for example, being openly humanist is impossible without the threat of state arrest and persecution, or as we have too often seen, death by extreme mob violence. @lucypotter.bsky.social

Fascinating to chair @lucypotter.bsky.social present her groundbreaking research and policy recommendations today. This study, conducted in collaboration with @humanists.uk, provides a rigorous examination of the barriers facing non-religious asylum seekers seeking safety in the UK.

After 4 years of work, I’ve published the first-ever report on non-religious asylum claims. This is a groundbreaking step for an often overlooked area of asylum protection. Please do read and share! ⬇️

'Home Office officials do not understand what apostasy is – this affects how non-religious asylum seekers are recognised, questioned, and believed.' Listen to Dr @lucypotter.bsky.social speak about her groundbreaking research on @humanismnowpod.bsky.social. humanismnow.buzzsprout.com/2246305/epis...

Twelve countries maintain the death penalty for 'blasphemy' and apostasy. This makes being openly humanist impossible. The Home Office must be able to recognise this, and protect non-religious people fleeing persecution. There must be equal protection for humanists.🧵 humanists.uk/2026/03/24/g...

Just one more day until my report launch - a deep dive into non-religious asylum claims and how people seeking protection based on non-belief and apostasy navigate the asylum system in the UK. Preview 👇 youtu.be/v7JKZUORkbc?... #Asylum #HumanRights #MigrationResearch #NonReligious

New stats show the asylum appeals backlog was over 80,000 cases at the end of 2025, relating to around 104,000 people - a 91% increase on a year before. 4 in 10 of all asylum appeals disposed of in the last 3 months of 2025 were withdrawals, the majority of which will be by the Home Office.

This session's now available to watch on YouTube too - youtu.be/-kyRXzDk8Is

During asylum interviews, Interpreters play a role in articulating a claimants story. But, what if interpretations have inadvertently shaped how applicants’ beliefs and identities are understood, translated, and assessed in asylum decision-making? More at our report launch ↓ tinyurl.com/5eedhknf

I welcome the UK gov’s new definition of ‘anti-Muslim hostility’. It captures vital protections for Muslims and those perceived as such, addressing the rise in hate while explicitly protecting freedom of expression for those who have left the faith ➡️ www.gov.uk/guidance/a-d...

Introducing our new Teaching Resources page! Check out the syllabi, reading lists, and assignment ideas shared by ISHASH members. We hope this inspires others to bring the histories of atheism, secularism & humanism into their teaching.

Take a look at what our academic and research staff published in February!👇

Lucy Potter ( @lucypotter.bsky.social ) has published an article exploring emotional experiences of non-religiosity within the migrant and refugee status determination procedures in @s-n-journal.bsky.social . buff.ly/dnG740j

Intriguing lecture on how ‘everything we think we know about religion is wrong’ by @ekwilson.bsky.social at @uoyevents.bsky.social 👏🏻 Looking forward to reading the book when it’s out

🔴NEW PUBLICATION🔴 "Becoming Non-Religious: Exploring the Emotional Experiences of Apostasy and Refugee Status Determination" by Lucy Elizabeth Potter. Read the Open Access paper here: 🔗 secularismandnonreligion.org/articles/10.... #NonReligion #RefugeeStudies #HumanRights #Sociology #AcademicSky

To save typing everything out, I have done a quick video on how Labour's latest attack on people seeking asylum, by halting work and study visas for Afghanistan, Sudan, Myanmar and Cameroon undermines its own arguments defending why they have cancelled other previously remaining resettlement routes.

Paying millions to re-check claims while refusing refugees the basic security they’ need to put down roots, work and rebuild their lives. We'd love the Government to explain how exactly this lose-lose plan is going to make anything better for anyone. www.mirror.co.uk/news/politic...

Temporary refugee status poses 'constant threat' to LGBTQ+ asylum seekers: 'Horribly inhumane' https://www.thepinknews.com/2026/03/02/temporary-refugee-status-poses-constant-threat-to-lgbtq-asylum-seekers-horribly-inhumane/?utm_content=1772604001&utm_medium=social&utm_source=bluesky

Spotted two of my favourites in the latest copy of @newhumanist.bsky.social 👏🏻 excellent stuff @zoejardiniere.bsky.social @davidolusoga.bsky.social

Informative video discussing the nuances between non-religious identification and beliefs in the 'Arab world', much of the discussion resonates with my research on non-religious refugees in and beyond this context: 👁️‍🗨️ youtu.be/Oy3JuwGJWBE?...

Asylum reforms proposing reassessments raise questions about how credibility is judged over time. My research on non-religious & apostasy claims shows credibility often relies on fixed ideas of identity that are hard to sustain when beliefs and safety change over time. More at our report launch ↓

British dual nationals risk imminent refusal of travel to UK, Home Office affirms

How do you prove who you are when your identity is still evolving? 🌀 Leaving religion in contexts with blasphemy laws is complex. The UK asylum system lacks the tools to recognise this reality. We’re launching our new report on 24th/3 to bridge this gap. Register here: tinyurl.com/5eedhknf

'Most of us in Britain aren’t Christian in our beliefs, practices, or identity. Although Christianity has contributed to our heritage, pre-Christian, non-Christian, and post-Christian influences have been just as important.' @andrewcopson.bsky.social www.politico.eu/article/nige...

The Equality Act needs to be strengthened, not scrapped. It brings together decades of anti-discrimination law. It protects you at work and in public life. It safeguards society's most vulnerable. Reform UK want to repeal it. humanists.uk/2026/02/19/t...

Just out: my new research on apostasy and non-religion among asylum seekers in the UK. It explores what it’s like emotionally to leave a religion in countries where it’s dangerous, and seek refuge here. 🧵

to be clear, Matthew Goodwin has one (1) child and should thus be penalised for failing to meet the replacement rate under the incentive scheme that he’s established here