The world is becoming more and more diverse.
At the same time, hatred of queer people is used in politics in many countries and the rights of minorities are questioned.
Brussels/Berlin/Cologne – More and more countries are taking action against queer people.
In Egypt, the police are apparently using dating apps to track gay men, and other African countries also want to tighten their laws.
In the US, the Supreme Court is threatening to reverse queer achievements.
And in Russia, Vladimir Putin is waging war on the West, indoctrinated and effeminate in its narrative of LGBTQIA+ propaganda.
In Germany, too, there are more and more cases of anti-queer violence, such as the deadly attack on trans man Malte C. last year in Münster.
It seems paradoxical: On the one hand, society is becoming more diverse, more and more countries are introducing marriage for all, the rights of the queer community are being strengthened and numerous people around the world are taking to the streets on Christopher Street Day.
On the other hand, these advances are being bitterly opposed by reactionary forces that want to return to a supposedly conservative social order.
In many parts of the world, anti-LGBTQIA+ narratives are being used to fuel politics and hatred against minorities.
In fact, it's still dangerous to live openly as a queer person.
And that there is a need for political action to protect the community worldwide.
Greens leader in the EU Parliament Terry Reintke on global hostility to queers
For social psychologist Pia Lamberty, an expert on conspiracy narratives, anti-queerism is on the rise in numerous countries.
“In the USA, but also in Poland and Hungary, there are mobilizations against queer people, they see themselves as alleged protectors of traditional values.
Networks have emerged that are working to restrict the rights of LGBTQIA+," Lamberty told the
Frankfurter Rundschau
a few months ago .
In particular, the extreme right pounces on the issues of gender and LGBTQIA+, "precisely because they are becoming more and more attached to society".
A phone call to Brussels.
On the other end of the line is a woman who is likely to be a thorn in the side of conservative and right-wing circles: young, female, lesbian, top politician.
The co-leader of the Greens in the European Parliament, Terry Reintke, is campaigning against the climate crisis - and for the rights of the LGBTQIA+ community.
"The fight against queer hostility is a global fight," she says.
In foreign policy, for example, the EU must speak up to support civil society organizations and queer communities worldwide and to address human rights violations.
Because the fact that more and more countries are turning towards autocracy, the rights of minorities in particular would be called into question.
“Societies that are more equal are more democratic and ultimately better for everyone.
That is the tone that we as a party would like to see in European foreign policy."
This also applies to the European Union itself. Reintke: “The EU is built on common values – this explicitly includes the protection of minorities.
The European Commission must do more to ensure that countries like Hungary and Poland protect the fundamental rights of all citizens and prevent discrimination from spreading to other EU Member States.”
Homophobia as a Colonial Legacy
"In 69 states, homosexuality is prosecuted, in ten states lesbians and gays are even threatened with the death penalty," writes the Federal Foreign Office in the guidelines on feminist foreign policy.
Looking across the globe, it is striking that almost half of the states with anti-queer legislation are on the African continent.
But what many people don't know is that laws against homosexuality often date back to British colonial times.
Today, queer acts are punishable in 32 countries on the continent.
Only recently Uganda caused horror.
At the end of March, the African country passed a law that makes the situation of queer people even more catastrophic than before.
You face a long prison sentence.
The law even provides for the death penalty as a last resort.
“Much of the anti-queer legislation in the Global South is colonial heritage.
For example, certain anti-homosexuality laws were introduced during the British occupation,” says Terry Reintke.
Sven Lehmann on anti-LGBT policy: "Queer people are portrayed as a scapegoat"
Germany also has a growing problem with queer hostility.
The Federal Ministry of the Interior is counting more and more crimes against queer people.
In 2021, around 1,000 assaults were registered, 870 crimes (increase of over 50 percent compared to the previous year) related to the "sexual orientation" spectrum, 340 crimes (increase of over 66 percent) to "gender/sexual identity".
The number of unreported cases is likely to be many times higher, because many attacks are not even reported.
Since the start of the traffic light coalition, Green politician Sven Lehmann has been the federal government's first queer commissioner.
“I am very concerned about how anti-queer sentiment is developing around the world.
More and more countries are actively restricting rights and creating a social atmosphere.
In the USA, especially in Florida, Hungary, Russia and Uganda, we are experiencing a backlash,” Lehmann told the
Frankfurter Rundschau
.
These attacks on the rights of the LGBT community are embedded in authoritarian and nationalist movements.
"Queer people are portrayed as scapegoats and serve as a distraction from bad governance," the Green politician is convinced.
But there is resistance: “The protection and promotion of human rights is the cross-cutting task of German and European foreign policy.
Germany has joined the EU Commission's lawsuit against Hungary for its anti-LGBT policies.
In addition, civil society organizations receive targeted support, because supporting local human rights work is key, for example in Serbia, which is caught between Russia, China and Europe,” said Lehmann.
They are necessary signals in the fight against the growing hostility toward queers worldwide.