Page 42 - bne_Magazine_September_2018

42 I Central Europe bne September 2018
Around 40,000 people marched Prague to support LGBT rights on Saturday, August 11.
LGBT Prague Pride supporters march
as parliament debates same-sex marriage laws
Prague Pride was has unique sig- nificance this year as the government backed a bill to allow same-sex mar- riages on June 22. The draft is now in the Chamber of Deputies for debate, but its passage into law remains far from certain.
One of the parties supporting the
bill – the Pirate Party – took part in the march in an allegorical ship full of party members dancing and waving LGBT flags. “There should be tolerance towards each other. It's why the Pirate Party supports this kind of thing,”
a member of the Pirate Party told
bne IntelliNews.
Organisers estimated that close to 40,000 people showed up on the sunny Saturday. The atmosphere was relaxed, people were enjoying the loud music playing from vehicles, having a beer for a lunch and painting their faces with rainbow flags.
The march was peaceful as no serious incidents occurred, which is unusual in Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries where similar gay parades are frequently targeted by violent counter- demonstrations from the conservative right wing.
The size is also extraordinary as in neighbouring Slovakia around 5,000 took part, in Romania the number was close to 10,000. In Poland with a popula- tion almost four times bigger, 45,000 marched in the Warsaw Pride according to organisers.
The Czech Republic is widely seen as the most liberal post-Communist country, but LGBT people are still having a hard time. “I have a lot of difficulties with being different. It can be connected with the fact of having a boyfriend or wearing
bne IntelliNews
Tens of thousands of dancing people marched through Prague city centre to celebrate the eighth lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Prague Pride festival at the weekend, while the Czech Republic's parliament grapples with the thorny issue of becoming the first post- Communist country to legalise same-sex marriages.
Wenceslas Square is usually dominated by tourists but it was covered with rainbow flags, a symbol of the LGBT movement around the world, from early afternoon on August 11.
People waving the rainbow, Czech and European flags gathered to support LGBT rights and later headed to park across the river. The flamboyant displays
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typical of parades in Berlin were to be seen: men clothed in flashing silver dresses or half-naked were among the crowd, but most of the marchers were young liberal people.
For many, Prague Pride is a way to connect to people, or just be seen. “We want to be seen, we want to see how many people are in our community,” Michal, 19, said.
“The Czech Republic's parliament grapples with the thorny issue of becoming the
first post-Communist country to legalise same-sex marriages”