Anti lgbtq propaganda
Bulgaria passes anti-LGBTI propaganda law
ILGA-Europe have condemned a fast-tracked statute banning the portrayal of LGBTI identities in Bulgarian educational institutions, warning that it is an charge on children’s rights and a distraction to secure votes for far-right and Russia-aligned parties in forthcoming elections.
Today the Bulgarian Parliament voted with almost a full majority to adopt an anti-LGBT propaganda law which prohibits “the carrying out of propaganda, promotion and incitement in any way, directly or indirectly, of ideas and views related to non-traditional homosexual orientation and/or the determination of gender culture other than biological” in the system of pre-school and school education, by amending the Preschool and School Learning Act (PSEA).
In both the reasoning behind the bill and during today’s debates it was mentioned that content “in the vicinity of” these educational establishments should also be banned. This means that any portrayal of LGBT people will be banned from schools and pre-schools, as adv as any unit in the vicinity of them.
Both the first and second readings were held today, seven days after passing the Committ
Bulgarian parliament bans LGBTQ+ 'propaganda' in schools
The bill, which was voted through with an overwhelming 159-22 majority despite outcry by rights NGOs, bans 'incitement' to 'non-traditional sexual orientation' or 'gender identity other than the biological one.'
Bulgaria's parliament passed changes to its education rule on Wednesday, August 7, widening its scope to ban LGBTQ+ "propaganda" in schools, in a go rights groups slammed as discriminatory.
The amendment to the law – proposed by the country's pro-Russian Vazrazhdane party – passed by a large majority, with 159 votes in favor, 22 against, and 12 abstentions.
The law now bans the "propaganda, promotion or incitement in any way, directly or indirectly, in the education system of ideas and views comparable to non-traditional sexual orientation and/or gender identity other than the biological one." In 2021, Hungary also passed a similar rule, banning LGBTQ+ "promotion" to minors.
Read moreSubscribers onlyIn Hungary, LGBTQ+ children's literature gets sealed in plastic wrap
Lawmakers also voted on a separate text that defines "non-traditional sexual orientation" as "different from the generally accepted and establi
Anti-LGBTQ
A central theme of anti-LGBTQ+ organizing and ideology is the opposition to Queer rights or support of homophobia, heterosexism and/or cisnormativity, often expressed through demonizing rhetoric and grounded in harmful pseudoscience that portrays LGBTQ+ people as threats to children, society and often public health.
Top Takeaways
In 2024, the number of anti-LGBTQ+ groups increased by about 13% from the previous year. Anti-LGBTQ+ groups maintained a trend in heavy mobilization across multiple strategies with increasing political and financial support from the hard right.
Anti-trans narratives were instrumental to the 2024 election at all levels of government, especially at the local level where anti-LGBTQ+ and anti-inclusive education activism continue to heavily overlap. The politicization of gender-affirming health look after and LGBTQ+-inclusive school curricula contributed to what has been characterized as the “most Anti-LGBTQ election in decades.” Republicans spent almost $215 Million on TV ads to smear transgender people, surpassing ads on rival issues such as economy, immigration and housing. Another wave of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation broke records at state and federal le
From Child Protection to Children’s Rights: Rethinking Homosexual Propaganda Bans in Human Rights Law
On June 29, 2013, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed into law a bill prohibiting “propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations among minors,” including supportive statements about gay, lesbian, attracted to both genders, and transgender persons.1 The legislation, which included fines of up to one million roubles (equivalent to roughly $31,000 at the time of passage) and possible jail time for offenders, sailed through the Duma on a vote of 436-0 and the Federation Council on a vote of 137-0, with roughly eighty-eight percent of respondents voicing support for the bill in common polling.2
The outcry from human rights activists was swift. Some groups staged disruptive protests,3 while others used the fast-approaching Sochi Olympics to invite pressure from supranational bodies, governments, corporations, and civil society, directed toward urging Russia to repeal the law.4 Graeme Reid, the director of the LGBT Program at Human Rights Watch, called the legislation “regressive and discriminatory,” echoing condemnation from the European Union, the Council of Europe, and the Venice Commission.5
The Russian ‘Anti-Gay Propaganda Law’ Going Online: Klimova and Others v. Russia as a Mixed Picture
by Dr. Betül Durmuş
Introduction
Over the summer, Bulgaria and Georgia adopted their own ‘anti-gay propaganda laws’ prohibiting dissemination of facts concerning sexual orientation or gender persona, under the guise of protecting children. And, on 19 November 2024, the Court of Justice of the European Union held a hearing on the infringement proceedings against Hungary’s anti-LGBTQI law.
It is in this heightened atmosphere that the Third Section of the European Court of Human Rights (‘Court’ or ‘ECtHR’) issued a new judgment concerning the Russian ‘anti-gay propaganda law’: Klimova and Others v. Russia (4 February 2025). The applicants of this case administered websites or social networking webpages providing information on LGBTQI-related issues or offering psychological and other forms of support to LGBTQI individuals. The Court found that the applicants’ convictions for the administrative offence of ‘promotion of non-traditional sexual relationships among minors’ and blocking of some of those websites or webpages breached Articles 8 and 10 of the European Convention