Real Queer? Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Refugees in the Canadian Refugee Apparatus by David A. B.Murray, Rowman & Littlefield International Ltd., London and New York, 2016, 194 pp., paper $49.35 (ISBN 978‐1783484409)

Canada is often presented as a progressive place ofhuman rights protection, so that even conservativepoliticians have mobilized the narrative of Canadaas a welcoming place for those seeking refuge on thebasis of sexual orientation and gender identity(SOGI) persecution. For over two decades theCanadian refugee apparatus has recognized suchclaims under the Refugee Convention. Media cover-age of this category of migration celebrates Canadaas a global leader in LGBT rights. Yet, this is an era inwhich security apparatuses in the Global North,including Canada, are increasingly aimed at keepingOthers out, marked by growing“suspicion, surveil-lance, and extradition”of border-crossers (p. 164).In this climate, SOGI asylum claimants are alsochallenged to prove the authenticity of their SOGIclaims.InReal Queer?, anthropologist David Murrayrecounts and analyzes how SOGI refugee claimantslearn to navigate the complex refugee determina-tion system in Canada. Murray observes how SOGIclaimants learn to be LGBT in ways that are legible inthe Canadian legal context to those deciding theclaims—namely, refugee board members. Boardmembers’perceptions of what it is to be authenti-cally LGBT are shaped by cultural understandingsthat may not align with the diverse backgroundsshaping the identities of refugee claimants.