By SAV (our sister organisation in Germany)
During Pride Month 2021, the Hungarian government under Victor Orbán passed a new law that strengthens discrimination against LGBTQI people. Insidiously, the law not only targets LGBTQI people but also mixes this with the issue of child protection and child abuse. Thus, LGBTQI people are not only criminalized, but also morally equated with violent criminals. The law prohibits education about LGBTQI issues in schools, advertising involving LGBTQI people, and the like. The goal is to push this oppressed minority out of the public eye.
On the occasion of the European football championship match between Germany and Hungary in Munich, the city wanted to illuminate the Allianz Arena with rainbow colors in solidarity with the queer community in Hungary. Even though this is only a symbolic protest that does not really help the queer community in Hungary directly, it would have been a positive symbol. However, this message of solidarity was banned by UEFA, a symbolic victory for Orbán and the right-wing forces in Hungary.
SAV (ISA in Germany) comrades in Munich then decided to organize a protest action themselves, under the banner of our Rosa Socialist Feminist Campaign. Shortly before the game, we were at Munich’s Central Station to talk to passers-by about the new anti-LGBTIQ law in Hungary and to hand out flyers. We had many good conversations with people from both Germany and Hungary, including football fans.
However, solidarity actions are not enough to fundamentally change the situation of the LGBTQI minority in Hungary. In order to get the government to roll back the repressive laws, collective action is needed, not only from LGBTQI people, but also from the broader population in Germany and Hungary and beyond. Working class people, queer or not, need to unite to fight homophobic and transphobic hate speech and oppression of all kinds!
Solidarity with the Queer Community in Hungary!
