Hungary PM Orban ‘scraps Euros visit’ amid German LGBT row with Uefa

Hours before Hungary’s footballers face Germany in Munich in their final Euro 2020 group stage match, Prime Minister Viktor Orban has cancelled a visit to the game, German reports say.

Earlier Germany and 13 other EU states condemned a Hungarian law that bans portraying homosexuality to under-18s.

Europe’s football governing body has been criticised for not allowing Munich to use rainbow colours in the stadium.

Uefa said it had to deny the request given the political context in Hungary.

German press agency DPA said Mr Orban had cancelled his trip to Munich and was planning to travel to Brussels instead, where an EU leaders’ summit starts on Thursday.

There was no confirmation from the prime minister’s spokesman, who said: “We do not provide information, now as before, on Viktor Orban’s private programme.”

Uefa rejected the request, insisting it was a “politically and religiously neutral organisation”. It later added a rainbow to its logo and said Munich’s request had been political, even though the rainbow symbol was not.

Uefa’s refusal was derided as “shameful” by Mayor Dieter Reiter, while Green party leader Annalena Baerbock called for rainbow colours to be displayed across Germany as a “strong message of diversity”.

pic.twitter.com/t7gRI8Me1K— UEFA (@UEFA) June 23, 2021

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Bavarian Premier Markus Söder said Germans had to “stand up against exclusion and discrimination” and Munich’s gay community said rainbow flags would be handed out to fans outside the Allianz Arena ahead of the match at 19:00 GMT.

German captain Manuel Neuer, who wore a rainbow armband for the first two games, will continue to do so.

A number of stadiums in Germany have said they will light up in rainbow colours, and Munich town hall tweeted a picture of rainbow flags hoisted outside the building.https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?creatorScreenName=BBCWorld&dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-1&features=eyJ0ZndfZXhwZXJpbWVudHNfY29va2llX2V4cGlyYXRpb24iOnsiYnVja2V0IjoxMjA5NjAwLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X2hvcml6b25fdHdlZXRfZW1iZWRfOTU1NSI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJodGUiLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X3R3ZWV0X2VtYmVkX2NsaWNrYWJpbGl0eV8xMjEwMiI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJjb250cm9sIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH19&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=1407295710907834371&lang=en-gb&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.com%2Fnews%2Fworld-europe-57579821&sessionId=73a76d2e50f33fe2d5c1deb2d07884f6641309df&siteScreenName=BBCWorld&theme=light&widgetsVersion=82e1070%3A1619632193066&width=550px

Tomorrow, 21:00 CEST 🏳️‍🌈#GemeinsamHertha #HaHoHe @Oly_Berlin pic.twitter.com/Vzc6yA9Zf8— Hertha Berlin (@HerthaBSC_EN) June 22, 2021

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European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the Hungarian law was “a shame” that went against European values.

• TV favourites threatened by anti-gay law in Hungary
• Uefa declines Munich’s rainbow request

What does Hungary say?

Mr Orban told DPA that modern Hungary protected the rights of homosexuals, but “whether the Munich football stadium or another European stadium lights up in rainbow colours is not a state decision”. In Budapest too, he said, rainbow colours were a normal part of the landscape.

Hungarian MPs voted last week to ban depiction or promotion of homosexuality to under-18s, as part of a law against paedophiles.

Justice Minister Judit Varga has rejected condemnation of the anti-LGBT law by 14 EU member states as based on “fake news”. It did not deprive anyone of their rights nor discriminate against any member of society, she insisted, complaining that the countries involved had not contacted Budapest to clarify the true meaning of the law.https://emp.bbc.com/emp/SMPj/2.43.3/iframe.htmlmedia captionViktor Orban in London in May 2021: I’m anti-immigration but not anti-Semitic

Three Hungarian clubs – Ferencvaros, MTK in Budapest and DVSC in Debrecen – said they would light up their stadiums in the red, white and green colours of the national flag.

“Homeland above all,” wrote Ferencvaros president Gabor Kubatov on Facebook. He is also a leading figure in Mr Orban’s ruling Fidesz party.

How broad is the protest?

The outcry against Uefa’s decision has spread far beyond football and politics in Germany.

In Munich alone, the Olympic tower and an enormous wind turbine near the stadium are to be lit up in rainbow colours.

Outside the stadium, a campaign to get as many of the 11,000 supporters as possible to wear stickers or carry flags is being co-ordinated by Christopher Street Day, which organises annual LGBT parades in July across Germany. An estimated 2,000 Hungary fans are expected to attend the game.

Stadiums in Berlin, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Cologne and Wolfsburg are among a number planning to light up during the match in rainbow colours.https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?creatorScreenName=BBCWorld&dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-2&features=eyJ0ZndfZXhwZXJpbWVudHNfY29va2llX2V4cGlyYXRpb24iOnsiYnVja2V0IjoxMjA5NjAwLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X2hvcml6b25fdHdlZXRfZW1iZWRfOTU1NSI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJodGUiLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X3R3ZWV0X2VtYmVkX2NsaWNrYWJpbGl0eV8xMjEwMiI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJjb250cm9sIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH19&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=1407626778127093760&lang=en-gb&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.com%2Fnews%2Fworld-europe-57579821&sessionId=73a76d2e50f33fe2d5c1deb2d07884f6641309df&siteScreenName=BBCWorld&theme=light&widgetsVersion=82e1070%3A1619632193066&width=550px

🏳️‍🌈

Viel Erfolg, @DFB_Team! #VfB #buntundwild #pride #VfBfairplay #GERHUN pic.twitter.com/fSjver4ygC— VfB Stuttgart (@VfB) June 23, 2021

The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.View original tweet on Twitter

Clubs including Stuttgart posted simple messages ahead of the match.

Some of Germany’s biggest companies posted rainbow colours on Facebook and Twitter, including BMW, Volkswagen, Siemens and financial organisations such as Sparkasse and Hypovereinsbank.

Aus Protest gegen das Regenbogen-Verbot der UEFA taucht sich nun auch Münchens Wirtschaft in die Farben des Regenbogens: die Twitter-Profile vom BMW, Siemens, Sparkasse, HypoVereinsbank 👇 pic.twitter.com/VE6ls3Vgne— Stefan Leifert (@StefanLeifert) June 22, 2021

The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.View original tweet on Twitter

German drag queen Olivia Jones started a petition online calling for Eurovision winner Conchita Wurst to sing the German anthem ahead of the match.

Related Topics

• Hungary
• Germany
• LGBT

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-57579821

Hungary’s anti-LGBT law is a ‘shame’ says President of European Commission Ursula von der Leyen

Read: https://www.euronews.com/2021/06/23/hungary-s-anti-lgbt-law-is-a-shame-says-ursula-von-der-leyen

Self-Regulation of Sports: UEFA slammed over ‘meaningless’ pledge to ‘respect the rainbow’ that didn’t mention LGBT+ people once

https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/06/23/uefa-rainbow-statement-germany-hungary-euro-2020/

Interesting new Book: Religious Speech, Hatred and LGBT Rights – An International Human Rights Analysis

Religious Speech, Hatred and LGBT Rights – An International Human Rights Analysis

Jeroen Temperman

June 2021

Paperback

ISBN 978 90 04 45885 7 – € 72 E-ISBN 978 90 04 45886 4 – € 72 Nijhoff Law Specials, 103

See: https://brill.com/view/title/59836

Laurel Hubbard: First transgender athlete to compete officially at Olympics

The 43-year-old became eligible to compete at the Olympics when the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 2015 changed its rules allowing transgender athletes to compete as a woman if their testosterone levels are below a certain threshold.

Read: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-57549653

Council of Europe adopts resolutions protecting LGBTI people

The Congress  of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe adopted two resolutions protecting the LGBTI community from discrimination and hatred at its 40^th Session on Wednesday.

The resolutions followed two independent reports–a report that drew attention to the situation of the LGBTI community, claiming that the rights of LGBTI persons were increasingly being politicized and challenged through contestation of their recognition and identity in various parts of Europe, and another report following the November 2020 fact-finding mission to Poland, which drew attention to increasing attacks against LGBTI people in Poland.

The first resolution, titled the “Protection of LGBTI people in the context of rising anti-LGBTI hate speech and discrimination: the role of local and regional authorities,” calls on member states of the Council of Europe to mainstream LGBTI equality through policy measures, introduce legislative instruments forbidding hate speech and discrimination against LGBTI people, to monitor policy responses through data collection and to implement recommendations, resolutions and judgments of all the Council of Europe bodies.

The second resolution, titled “The role of local authorities with regard to the situation and rights of LGBTI people in Poland,” calls on Poland to withdraw all declarations and resolutions, such as the Local government Charters of the Rights of the Family, which were passed by various local and regional authorities in Poland declaring that such authorities were opposed to the “LGBT ideology.” The resolution has also called on Poland to ensure that LGBTI people, being a vulnerable group, are protected keeping in mind the deleterious impact that hate speech and discrimination can have on their lives.

Highlighting the need for and timing of the resolutions, especially when Hungary passed a law prohibiting discussion about gender identity and sexual orientation, the President of the Congress of Council of Europe, Leendert Verbeek, stated:

The rising anti-LGBTI hate speech and discrimination is one of [the reasons behind the resolutions] and it is indeed very worrying to learn about the legislation passed by the Hungarian parliament yesterday, particularly at a time when Hungary presides over the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe.

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USA: Education Department interprets Title IX to protect LGBTQ+ students

The US Department of Education issued a notice of interpretation Wednesday to extend Title IX’s prohibition on sex-based discrimination to gender identity and sexual orientation, reversing the opposite stand taken by the Education Department under the Trump administration.

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 prevents sex-based discrimination in any education program offered by a beneficiary of federal financial aid from the department. Title IX’s new interpretation is based on the US Supreme Court’s verdict in Bostock v Clayton County in which the court held that discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation inherently involves discrimination based on sex. Although the Bostock decision interpreted Title VII only, the notice said that the court’s reasoning is also applicable to Title IX.

US Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said:

The Supreme Court has upheld the right for LGBTQ+ people to live and work without fear of harassment, exclusion, and discrimination – and our LGBTQ+ students have the same rights and deserve the same protection. I’m proud to have directed the Office for Civil Rights to enforce Title IX to protect all students from all forms of sex discrimination.

Further, the notice stated that the new interpretation overrides any previous contradictory statements made by the department about the scope of Title IX’s jurisdiction over discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation. However, it affirmed the exemption of educational institutes controlled by religious organizations from the application of Title IX.

The interpretation comes after President Joe Biden signed an executive order in March guaranteeing an educational environment devoid of discrimination based on sex, including gender identity and sexual orientation.

Recently, the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights also reported that LGBTQ+ students experience additional challenges in school, including disproportionate harassment, bullying and victimization, which were worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The post US Education Department interprets Title IX to protect LGBTQ+ students appeared first on JURIST – News – Legal News & Commentary.

Hungarian parliament adopts bill banning LGBT content in schools

The National Assembly of Hungary adopted Bill Number T/16365 on Tuesday, effectively banning sexual orientation and gender identity related discourse in schools.

The new law, which bans discussions relating to the LGBTQIA+ community, contains various other provisions that put in place stronger measures against acts of pedophilia and sexual crimes against children–all the provisions forming part of the narrative of protecting children.

The new law amends various statutes, the primary one being Act XXXI of 1997 on the Protection of Children and the Administration of Guardianship. Section 1 of the new law, which makes an amendment to the 1997 Act, prohibits the act of making available to a person below 18 years of age any content which disseminates an understanding of gender that deviates from sex assigned at birth or which promotes and displays homosexuality.

In a similar spirit, section 3 of the new law amends Act XLVIII of 2008 on the Basic Requirements and Certain Restrictions of Commercial Advertising Activities and prohibits advertising in a way which makes available to a person below 18 years of age content relating to one’s self-identity being different from one’s sex assigned at birth, gender reassignment or homosexuality, with the aim of protecting children in their sexual development.

Various rights organizations have opposed the new law for being discriminatory, violating free speech and stigmatizing the LGBTQIA+ community. They have urged the President of Hungary Janos Ader to veto the bill and send it back to the National Assembly for review.

Neela Ghoshal, the Associate LGBT Rights Director at Human Rights Watch stated, “Hungary’s ruling party is cynically deploying a ‘protection of children’ narrative to trample on rights and try to render LGBT people invisible. Children do not need to be protected from exposure to diversity. On the contrary, LGBT children and families need protection from discrimination and violence.”

The post Hungarian parliament adopts bill banning LGBT content in schools appeared first on JURIST – News – Legal News & Commentary.

USA – Colorado: Notorious Christian baker broke the law by refusing to bake a trans woman’s cake, judge rules

A Colorado baker has been fined by a district judge after he refused to bake a blue and pink birthday cake celebrating a trans customer’s transition.

https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/06/17/masterpiece-cakeshop-jack-phillips-autumn-scardina-ruling/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=PNnewsletter

USA: Supreme Court held today in Fulton v. Philadelphia that Catholic Social Services is exempt from municipal laws that would have required it to place foster children with gay couples

• 

(C) The Williams Institute williamsinstitute@law.ucla.edu

This morning, in Fulton v. City of Philadelphia, all nine justices of the U.S. Supreme Court found that the city of Philadelphia had violated the constitutional rights of Catholic Social Services by canceling the agency’s contract when they refused to work with same-sex couples. However, the decision was a narrow one. It did not affirm a broad license to discriminate in the name of religion.
 
The liberal members of the Supreme Court joined Roberts and Barrett in a majority opinion that ruled narrowly based on the provisions in the specific contract at issue. Since Philadelphia’s contract contained an individualized exemption process from complying with its non-discrimination provisions, the Court held that such an exemption could not be denied when it imposed a religious hardship without a compelling reason.
 
The Court also rejected the city’s arguments that granting this exemption would reduce the number of available foster parents, create liability issues for the city, or undermine the equal treatment of prospective foster parents and foster children. Notably, the Court’s reasoning does not consider what would happen if many or most providers in a local area discriminated against LGBTQ people or same-sex couples, or whether its holding might make that scenario more likely in more conservative parts of the country.
 
Despite the loss in this case, the decision is a narrow one. The decision leaves important Supreme Court precedent intact and skirts making a decision that could impact all government contracts or all non-discrimination laws that apply to public accommodations.
 
The majority opinion also restates from its decision in the 2018 Masterpiece case that “our society has come to the recognition that gay persons and gay couples cannot be treated as social outcasts or as inferior in dignity and worth.” There is some hope that both Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Barrett signed onto an opinion reaffirming this statement.
 
Williams Institute research shows the importance of non-discrimination protections to upholding the dignity and worth of LGBTQ families and the over 400,000 children who need foster parents. Our research has shown that an estimated 114,000 same-sex couples are raising children; that same-sex couples raising children are seven times more likely to be raising adopted or foster children than different-sex couples; and that nearly 20% of youth in foster care in Los Angeles are LGBT. For more information on the impact of the Court’s decision on same-sex couples, I invite you to read the Williams Institute’s amicus brief.
 
And because of Williams Institute research, we know it is false to frame these fights as between LGBTQ people and people of faith. Many religions now support LGBTQ people and their families. And many LGBTQ people are religious. Our recent analysis found that 5.3 million LGBT adults are religious, reporting that religion is an important part of their daily life or that they regularly attend services.  
 
Religions and people of faith are on both sides of these issues, as evidenced by the large number of religious organizations, leaders, and people of faith who filed briefs in support of the City of Philadelphia and LGBTQ people in this case.
 
While the first two decisions pitting LGBTQ rights against religious liberty have been decided on narrow grounds, the fight is far from over. Thank you for your support as we continue our long tradition of research that not only informs debates but helps to reframe them.