Eddie Balciunaite was surrounded by thousands of people in glitter, rainbow flags and sparkly costumes as he prepared to participate in one of the largest marches that the Baltic countries has ever seen.
The 21-year old nonbinary Lithuanian was raised in a country that banned the sharing of information that “expresses contempt (or) encourages the creation of a family (or) is contrary to family values (or).” This law, which critics call the “gay propaganda,” even predated Russia’s notorious 2013 legislation.
Balciunaite said that the first time she heard about queer people was in church. “So it wasn’t a very favorable portrayal as you can see,” Balciunaite told NBC News. Balciunaite uses he/she/they pronouns. You Google stuff, you talk with your friends, and hopefully, you learn something about your self — but not with the assistance of your teacher or school.
Nearly 10,000 people, mostly young adults from Lithuania, flocked to Vilnius, the capital of the country, to join the annual Baltic Pride march Saturday.
Juan Miguel, a Spaniard from Spain who studied abroad in Lithuania and organized a reunion of his friends spread across Europe, said “This is amazing.” “Nine years ago there were neo-Nazis on both sides, and more police than participants.”
The annual event rotates among the capitals in each of the three countries every year since 2009, bringing together activists from all over the world and international supporters. Baltic Pride was held in Vilnius for the first-ever time in 2010. Only 400 people marched back then.
“It wasn’t easy. “People looked at us as if they were in the zoo,” Vladimir Simonko, executive Director of LGL, Lithuania’s largest LGBTQ group, said. “Our community is brave enough to march, and we have many allies who are there with us.”
Google, Moody’s, and the Nordic-Baltic Bank Swedbank were some of the sponsors and participants in this year’s march. There were also embassies from countries like the United States, Canada, and Norway. Matthew Shepard’s parents, an American student who was brutally murdered in Wyoming in 1998, were also present.
From 1944 to 1991, Lithuania and Estonia were under Soviet occupation. They joined the European Union along with other Eastern bloc countries like Poland and Hungary in 2004. Their human rights records, especially in relation to sexual minorities, are worse than their Nordic neighbors.
According to ILGA Europe, the E.U.’s LGBTQ advocacy group, only Romania, Poland and Bulgaria are worse than Latvia and Lithuania for LGBTQ rights. Estonia, a country that has been a success story for its digital transformation, is still in the lower half for legal protections for LGBTQ people. Estonia, for instance, is the only Baltic country to have introduced civil unions for gay couples.
But things are slowly changing. The Latvian and Lithuanian parliaments are currently discussing similar bills to allow civil partnerships for same-sex married couples.
Jurgita Sejoniene (conservative member of parliament, sponsor of the bill) stated that “we didn’t pay enough attention before to human rights in Lithuania.” “We arrived too late with this bill. They are people, they have the same rights as everyone else.
After many failed attempts, the bill was diluted — the bill omitting the term “family” for example — she hopes to get a parliamentary majority supporting the measure within the next few weeks or months. She said that same-sex marriage is still many years away. “When people realize civil unions don’t affect them in any manner, we will change public opinion step by step. This could be the key to success in Lithuania.
Tomas Raskevicius is Lithuania’s only openly homosexual member of parliament. He said that the Catholic Church and the legacy of Soviet occupation are the main reasons for the reluctance of LGBTQ people to be granted legal recognition. In 1933, the USSR made homosexual relations illegal. It wasn’t until 1993, however, that Lithuania, an independent country, began to legalize homosexuality. Estonia and Latvia had already done it a year before.
Raskevicius, a lawyer and LGBTQ activist, said he entered politics to make “systemic changes” as he prepared for meeting a group of young Lithuanians in the parliament to listen to their concerns. In the hope of triggering more substantive change, he said that he would vote for the civil-union bill.
He stated that he was not pleased with the bill because it contained many compromises. “Politics is hard. This is only the beginning of the journey to equality.
Latvia could follow a similar path in the coming days or weeks. The president must not veto the bill, which is only one vote away from approval.
Kaspars Zalitis (board member of the Latvian LGBTQ group Mozaika) stated that “Until now politicians didn’t care. But things have been changing in recent years.” “We made a lot of progress in recognizing families that are not married.”
According to Transgender Europe, Latvia is the only country that requires transgender persons to undergo mandatory sterilization if they want to legally change their gender. 2017 was the European Court of Human Rights’ ruling that sterilization requirements violate trans people’s rights to bodily integrity.
As Ana Metra, a Latvian activist, marched through Vilnius’ rainbow parade, Ana Metra stated that the law’s wording was unclear because it refers to a permanent or semipermanent sexual change. “Trans issues are not part of the public conversation, unlike same-sex civil marriages. Trans people feel like they have to wait in line for their turn.
Trans rights are not even on the agenda is a common view held by activists from the region. Trans people can change their legal gender in Estonia since 2002 without having to undergo sex-reassignment surgery or sterilization.
Anette Maletjarv from the Estonian LGBT Association said, “But if your legal gender marker is to be changed, you must start taking hormones, and prove your gender identity before a medical committee.” Maletjarv stated that “people still don’t understand” despite Estonian’s gender neutrality. This is a concern for nonbinary Lithuanians whose language is highly gendered.
Only a few European countries have implemented nonbinary gender recognition, including Germany, Malta, and Iceland.
Maletjarv stated that many of the laws made in the early years were influenced in part by the desire to join the European Union in 2004. “But now, we’re in some pause; it doesn’t seem like there’s much movement.”
However, the increasing number of Pride participants across the Baltics suggests that civil society, especially younger generations, is slowly accepting LGBTQ rights.
“We are the first generation to have not been raised under Soviet occupation. We grew up within the European Union. We can do what we want. It’s going get better,” Balciunaite stated Saturday, as the Pride march speakers played global queer anthems ranging from Katy Perry’s “I Kissed a Girl” to Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive.”
An additional flag was displayed next to the parade of Pride symbols that filled Vilnius this year. Protesters from across the region brought Ukrainian flags, banners, and banners to protest Russia’s invasion.
“We are not surprised by what is happening in Ukraine. Everyone understood that it was just a matter of time,” Simonko, a Lithuanian activist, said.
Maletjarv also agreed and said, “The Ukrainians are fighting not only for their freedom but for human rights across Europe.”
Many thousands of Ukrainians fled to the Baltics. Some are LGBTQ. Anna Dovgopol from Kyiv said that she was moved by the support. She had previously been a queer rights activist back home, but had to leave her homeland two months ago.
“This is an inspiration to me. She said that she hoped it would be as successful in Ukraine after the war ends. A group of LGBTQ refugees from Ukraine and their allies, along with other migrants who have lived in Lithuania longer, held banners calling on the government to recognize and promote LGBTQ equality and peace in Lithuanian. A bisexual woman dressed in traditional Ukrainian clothing while dancing with a rainbow flag.
Dovgopol said that she will return to Kyiv within the next few days to ensure the situation does not get worse. She also stated that she is optimistic about the future for sexual minorities in her country once the war is over.
She said, “It’s going be a difficult time, but it’s worth it. I hope Ukraine adopts a more ambitious stance regarding human rights.”
However, LGBTQ people in the region are concerned that they might be the next.
“We know Russia better that many other countries. Zalitis, a Latvian activist, stated that he was born in the Soviet Union and lived there until he was eight. All three Baltic countries have borders with Russia. Belarus is a supporter and also borders Lithuania and Latvia.
“We know word for word what Putin is trying to say. He is out of control. “No one can predict what he will do,” Zalitis stated about Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The influence of Russia in the Baltics extends far beyond the invasion by Ukraine.
Lithuanian MP Raskevicius stated that “they have been using their softpower for a very long while.” “Russian-speaking Lithuanians eat the ‘dirt Russia’ is putting on them, and they have been actively exporting homophobia in the region.”
Each country has Russian-speaking minorities that consume information and news from Russian-based outlets.
MP Sejoniene stated that Covid-19 was the same. They were spreading misinformation about vaccines in the area.
Tens of Russian television channels were banned in all Baltic countries since the start of the conflict in Ukraine.
Zalitis said that some of the right-wing anti LGBTQ+ abuse uses the same language as it does in Russia, Hungary, and sometimes Poland. “So you can do the math,” he added. He also blames U.S.-based evangelical organizations for encouraging homophobia and transphobia in the region.
Baltic queer people are concerned that the spread of anti-LGBTQ narratives could undermine what has been accomplished so far or halt future progress.
Rimas Prokopovicius was 21 when he was brought up in Lithuania under the “gay propaganda” law.
“No one discussed it in schools. He said that the only thing they heard was the “f-word”, which is how he learned about LGBTQ+ people. “But, we did discuss LGBTQ+ people with religion teachers. They could have called it a sin, but that was somehow okay.
He can be gay in Vilnius but is reluctant to tell his parents. His parents live in Vilnius and he doesn’t want to make the decision until he has financial independence. Lithuania is home to the highest number of LGBTQ persons in the E.U. 60 percent of respondents are not open about their sexuality, according to a 2020 survey conducted by the E.U.’s Fundamental Rights Agency.
Although the “gay propaganda law” of 2009 in Lithuania has not been implemented since 2014 it is still in force.
Simonko stated that if you do not use it, it is time to cancel it. Advocates say that this conversation is more difficult than same-sex civil marriages because it involves the type of LGBTQ representation minors are exposed too.
The European Court of Human Rights is challenging the “gay propaganda” law after a book about fairy tales featuring gay couples was sold with stickers stating that it was not appropriate for children under 14.
Raskevicius stated that the public discussion will be sensitive because it involves minors, children. People still believe that having LGBT people around their kids will make them gay.
Young people from different Baltic countries gathered in what appeared to have been an abandoned industrial building just outside Vilnius’ center. The event was branded “queer-feminist” and the words “WE are PROPAGANDA”, in rainbow colors, were projected onto a wall.
Sandra, a local 21-year old, stopped dancing during the event to answer a question regarding the future of LGBTQ rights within the Baltics.
She stated, “We are the future for this country, despite Russia and despite the church, and despite all those trying to stop it,”
