Tsion Gurmu (she/her/እሷ) is an Ethiopian-American attorney, futurist, writer, and researcher on migration, with special focus on gender and sexuality. Tsion is one of the leading cutting-edge voices centering the voices of Black immigrants in the immigrant rights movement and supporting the growth of the ecosystem of Black immigrant rights organizations over the past 10 years. Though she advocates for Black migrants in a variety of areas, she has a special interest in the areas of criminalization, exclusion, and separation of Black migrants. Born in Axum, Ethiopia, during the late 1980s civil war. Her father, a political organizer imprisoned under the Derg military regime, and her mother were in hiding at the time of her birth. Gurmu spent her early childhood in Addis Ababa with her grandmother before reuniting with her parents in the United States, who had sought asylum. Growing up in Atlanta's Buford Highway community, Gurmu was surrounded by African asylum-seekers, which sparked her interest in immigration and international human rights law.
Tsion earned her bachelor's degree in political science and history, with a minor in human rights, from the University of Chicago in 2010. During her studies, Tsion interned with the Ethiopian Women Lawyers Association, focusing on sexual and reproductive health rights, poverty, and gender-based violence. She also studied African Civilization at the University of Cape Town in Cape Town, South Africa. At the University of Chicago, she was awarded the College Outstanding New Leader Award, awarded to two students for exemplary contributions to student life; Student Marshal honor, awarded to students for academic excellence and contributions to the campus and local community Maroon Key Society, an honorary society of advisors selected for strong communication skills and campus involvement; Howell Murray Alumni Association Award, awarded to two graduates for their contributions to the University; and Perry Herst Prize, awarded to a graduate who has combined academic excellence with social responsibility.
She was also awarded honors for her senior thesis, Student Activism and the Transnational Black Liberation Movement: A Comparative Study of Black Student Movements in the United States and South Africa. Tsion later attended New York University School of Law for a Juris Doctor degree, graduating in 2015. While at NYU School of Law, she was awarded the International Law and Human Rights Fellowship, a highly selective specialized training program in international law; Kim Barry Graduation Prize, awarded to a graduate who exhibits academic excellence in international human rights work; and NYU President Service Award, awarded to a student who had an extraordinary and positive impact on the University. While there, she was active in the Immigrant Rights Clinic (IRC) of Washington Square Legal Services, Inc., at NYU Law School, a leading institution in both local and national struggles for immigrant rights. She also worked with Defence for Children International in Sierra Leone (DCI-SL), drafting child protection-related trial briefs for the Supreme Court.
“ When I found out I had been granted asylum, it was joy. I was happy to be able to walk down the street, hold hands with my partner, without being judged.” - Former Client
Tsion Gurmu is a 2015 Equal Justice Works Fellow
Tsion is also the Founder and Director of the Queer Black immigrant project (QBip), a Black radical lawyering initiative that aims to create a systemic response to meet the legal and social needs of LGBTQIA+ Black migrants while elevating narratives that illuminate the global injustices of state-sponsored homophobia and anti-Black racism. All of Tsion’s work addresses the complex and nuanced intersecting oppressions experienced by Black immigrants by providing culturally competent representation while simultaneously developing alternative forums for the pursuit of justice. Through direct legal representation, she has created sustainable avenues for Black immigrants to assert asylum claims based on ethnicity, sexual identity, gender identity, and HIV/AIDS status. With the understanding that no fundamental social change can come about solely through the formal legal system, Tsion’s work combines direct legal representation with critical social support, including a bi-weekly support group and monthly workshops to teach the craft of storytelling. As a Black immigrant woman in leadership positions at organizations on the front lines of social change and social justice, she is constantly working with fellow Black immigrants who have experienced trauma. Consequently, she has developed skills to help strengthen her inner resilience, vision, and compassion to deepen and expand the reach of her work.
Tsion has also advised the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) on racially discriminatory immigration practices, particularly those impacting migrants of African descent; she has advised the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia, and related intolerance on racial discrimination and emerging digital technologies; she advocated for and presented at the first thematic hearing before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) on the intersection of structural racism and migration in the Americas, as well as the first thematic hearing before the IACHR on racism, climate change, and human mobility.
Tsion has received recognition for her work at the intersection of international law, immigration, and racial justice by Preet Bharara and CAFÉ 100, change-makers taking action to address the most pressing global issues. She was also selected as a 2018 Forbes 30 Under 30 Law & Policy honoree, 2019 OkayAfrica Top 100 Women honoree, 2019 NYU Law OUTLaw Alumna of the Year, 2020 NYU Law LACA Under 40 Rising Stars, 2021 NYU Law Women of Color Collective Alumna of the Year, 2022 ABA Top 40 Young Lawyers on the Rise honoree, 2023 New York City Bar Association Annual Legal Services Award honoree, and 2024 Marquis Who's Who honoree . Tsion holds a B.A. in Political Science and History, with a minor in Human Rights, from the University of Chicago. She also holds a J.D. from New York University School of Law. She is licensed to practice in New York.
Tsion is also the Founder and Director of the Queer Black immigrant project (QBip), a Black radical lawyering initiative that aims to create a systemic response to meet the legal and social needs of LGBTQIA+ Black migrants while elevating narratives that illuminate the global injustices of state-sponsored homophobia and anti-Black racism. All of Tsion’s work addresses the complex and nuanced intersecting oppressions experienced by Black immigrants by providing culturally competent representation while simultaneously developing alternative forums for the pursuit of justice. Through direct legal representation, she has created sustainable avenues for Black immigrants to assert asylum claims based on ethnicity, sexual identity, gender identity, and HIV/AIDS status. With the understanding that no fundamental social change can come about solely through the formal legal system, Tsion’s work combines direct legal representation with critical social support, including a bi-weekly support group and monthly workshops to teach the craft of storytelling. As a Black immigrant woman in leadership positions at organizations on the front lines of social change and social justice, she is constantly working with fellow Black immigrants who have experienced trauma. Consequently, she has developed skills to help strengthen her inner resilience, vision, and compassion to deepen and expand the reach of her work.
Tsion is the first Legal Director of the Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI), the first national immigrant rights organization for people of African descent representing the nearly 10 million Black immigrants living in the United States. As the first Legal Director of BAJI she provides technical support and oversight to the immigration legal services programs for BAJI’s five offices throughout the United States and supports advocacy on matters related to refugees and immigrants. She also leads BAJI’s work along the US-Mexico border and in Southern Mexico to empower Black migrants with information about current immigration laws and prepare asylum seekers for credible fear interviews (CFIs) and reasonable fear interviews (RFIs) to ensure Black migrants can access legal protection in the US. Since the pandemic, she has expanded BAJI’s work in Mexico to expand BAJI’s bi-weekly virtual asylum support clinics for Black migrants in Mexico and serve more Black migrants than ever before. She has also led critical transparency litigation, including FOIA litigation concerning the deployment of CBP personnel to protests in various U.S. cities following the killing of George Floyd by Minnesota police officers, as well as FOIA litigation concerning the conditions, treatment, and outcomes for Black immigrants in eight facilities throughout the U.S. South. She also played a critical role in the development of BAJI’s joint complaint concerning ICE’s abuse of restraints, such as “The WRAP," to threaten, coerce, and punish asylum seekers with torture before and during deportation proceedings. Overall, in her role as BAJI’s Legal Director, she works to prioritize the civil and human rights of Black immigrants and asylum seekers through legal representation and impact litigation to challenge and change unjust, racist, and anti-Black immigration policies and practices to protect and liberate Black immigrant communities from detention and deportation. Tsion is a trusted advisor and board member to many organizations and initiatives, including the Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC) Board of Directors and the American Bar Association (ABA) Commission on Immigration.
