Magdalena Swider is the Program coordinator of KPH (Kampania Przeciw Homofobii /Campaign Against Homophobia), leading polish LGBT NGO. We wanted to interview this queer activist and specialist of hate crimes, because for months now, LGBT people have been the target of hate speeches from Andrzej Duda, former president now running for reelection in Poland.

So  Alice Coffin, journalist and team member of EL*C interviewed her on July 1st. Since then, as July 12, final election day is getting closer, other attacks have again been voiced against LGBTI people.

Magdalena Swider tells us how KPH and other activists are organising their resistance in the midst of this terrible political campaign which could also be a turning point if Andrzej Duda is defeated by his opponent Rafal Trzaskowski, mayor of Warsaw.

For weeks, LGBT people have been at the center of the presidential campaign. Why do you think Duda made this choice of targeting LGBTs?

The president, the Law and Justice Party, they choose scape goats. In the 2015 campaign it was the refugees. For the last two years and European and Parliamentary, and now the presidential elections, focus is on LGBTIs. But for this election, we have reached one other level. Before, they were talking about LGBT people as a threat to Polish values. Now they focus on a strategy of dehumanization, they are saying LGBTI persons are not people, but an ideology.

The focus on both migrants, refugees, and LGBTIs is witnessed in other parts of Europe. Or, in other European countries there is also a specific racist target against Muslims. How do those strategies of crystallizing on some minorities interconnect?

 We learnt a lot from the activists who were fighting the hate campaigns against refugees. What we both try to do is show the connections between public speeches of politicians and attacks in the streets. For example, one organization did a research showing that every time a politician voices hate speech, more hate crimes happen. About the attacks against LGBTI people, every four years we do a big research. We are about to publish the new ones, and it will be very interesting (and frightening) to compare the numbers with the previous ones and how the rise of homophobic hate speech has consequences on mental health of the LGBT community and the rise of violence – how you get attacked in the street, whether it is  by football fans or nationalists, for wearing a rainbow bag.

What is the role of KPH during the election? Do you give voting instructions?

 No. Well, usually not at all. But with Duda it is a little different. This time we are saying « end the homophobic presidency » and we also encourage our community to go and vote. The participation rates in the first row have never been as high since 1989. This is connected.We are expecting lots of hate speech to come out this week, so we got ready on monitoring Duda’s campaign. We also organise events such as silent protests.

 Are you supported by the population?

We did not start those protests ourselves. People were starting them spontaneously. The world of acadomia reacted with at least 20 universities issuing a statement against hate speech. Also not only did a lot of people go to vote, but they sometimes went wearing rainbow socks or other kinds of outfits to show why they were going to vote.

 It seems the political strategy of targeting the LGBTI people did not work that well this time. How do you analyse this?

Circumstances were different because of Covid-19. It changed different things. First, usually for their campaigns, politicians do researches, with focus groups, and adjust their strategy like marketing. But I think they did not do it this time –  they just went for the easy strategy and targeted LGBTI people but voters did not buy it. They were too frustrated and furious to believe it so much. And this is precisely also because of the virus. There was a lot of money  spent on equipment that did not reach people, the minister of health was heavily criticized, lots of people lost their jobs so there was anger. And blaming the LGBT community was not believable.

Did the virus also affect your organization?

Yes because it was very tricky to make our position. When Law and Justice and Duda who were very popular before the corona virus  decided they wanted to maintain the election despite the fact that everything was shut down, we did not know if the elections will be organized in the first term or whether it will be postponed. Whether  we should boycott the election or go anyway and get our health at risk. Finally, they decided to postpone the election.

Yes, the choice for strategy of activists are very tough to make during corona virus time. How are you keeping up between this and the tough campaign?

The bright side is, I have been working as an activist for nine years, and I have never seen much of what could be called a community. But because of this backlash, people are starting to come out more. A volunteer explained to me that she was at her workplace , and her colleagues were having a discussion about the Rainbow Friday action we organize at schools, and she could not stand what she was hearing. So she came out. This is a positive trend.

How do the media behave during this campaign?

The nation public tv is completely with Law and Justice and advise people to go and vote for Duda. They have breached every ethical stand. They never behave as journalists with us. They never approach us to ask questions. They just come to our office with their camera, when they want to point at us. And they never either ask for people from academia to comment the news. Their so called talking experts are right wing publicists. Those media are really using the same language as the fundamentalists groups. .They explain that lgbt want to teach four year olds to masturbate…Not to mention that this channel, the public tv, sent a fake volunteer to our association.

What???

Yes, TVP1 made this thirty minutes documentary called « Invasion » and broadcasted on TVP1. They infiltrated our organisation via a fake volunteer. I am featuring in this documentary and I was very angry about this. They recorded some of our volunteers who are not out at all. And they broadcasted this last fall, two days before the elections, during prime time between a presidential speech and a very important football game so there were so many people watching.

 When the European Lesbian Conference gathered in Ukraine, in April 2019, there were protests every day in front of the conference, in Kyiv. And it seems like they were protesting as much against the word « European » as the word « lesbian ». Is the fight against LGBTIs in Poland also a fight against Europe or is this as this article puts it a wrong way of looking at things?

For sure, there is a huge rhetoric about how the lgbt movement is all about western countries trend coming to destroy our values. And they keep using examples of Germany or The Netherlands as places which have turned bad because of same-sex mariages. However I think the European institutions should be careful about not to link the attribution of structural funds to Poland to the way the country treats LGBTI people. Because then it looks like it is because of LGBTs that money is taking away. The strategies are very difficult to elaborate, and we are working on it quite a lot with ILGA Europe.

What can activists do in Europe do to help you?

First, press their politicians to actually react to what is going on. Second, come to our Pride marches. When people from other countries come to our March, it makes them safer.

We will do our best with EL*C to come and march with you as soon as possible. By the way, is are there any specificities of how lesbians are targeted or reacting during those times?

Well when it comes to activists the community is coming together and I don’t see lesbians very different than gays. Everyone is suffering from the resolutions taken in LGBT free zones. But I think when it comes to constitutional symbols or measures, like the one on mariages or adoptions, then it impacts more women, single mothers, lesbians. Because more of them have rainbow families.

Magdalena Swider is the Program coordinator of KPH (Kampania Przeciw Homofobii /Campaign Against Homophobia), leading polish LGBT NGO. We wanted to interview this queer activist and specialist of hate crimes, because for months now, LGBT people have been the target of hate speeches from Andrzej Duda, former president now running for reelection in Poland.

So  Alice Coffin, journalist and team member of EL*C interviewed her on July 1st. Since then, as July 12, final election day is getting closer, other attacks have again been voiced against LGBTI people.

Magdalena Swider tells us how KPH and other activists are organising their resistance in the midst of this terrible political campaign which could also be a turning point if Andrzej Duda is defeated by his opponent Rafal Trzaskowski, mayor of Warsaw.

For weeks, LGBT people have been at the center of the presidential campaign. Why do you think Duda made this choice of targeting LGBTs?

The president, the Law and Justice Party, they choose scape goats. In the 2015 campaign it was the refugees. For the last two years and European and Parliamentary, and now the presidential elections, focus is on LGBTIs. But for this election, we have reached one other level. Before, they were talking about LGBT people as a threat to Polish values. Now they focus on a strategy of dehumanization, they are saying LGBTI persons are not people, but an ideology.

The focus on both migrants, refugees, and LGBTIs is witnessed in other parts of Europe. Or, in other European countries there is also a specific racist target against Muslims. How do those strategies of crystallizing on some minorities interconnect?

 We learnt a lot from the activists who were fighting the hate campaigns against refugees. What we both try to do is show the connections between public speeches of politicians and attacks in the streets. For example, one organization did a research showing that every time a politician voices hate speech, more hate crimes happen. About the attacks against LGBTI people, every four years we do a big research. We are about to publish the new ones, and it will be very interesting (and frightening) to compare the numbers with the previous ones and how the rise of homophobic hate speech has consequences on mental health of the LGBT community and the rise of violence – how you get attacked in the street, whether it is  by football fans or nationalists, for wearing a rainbow bag.

What is the role of KPH during the election? Do you give voting instructions?

 No. Well, usually not at all. But with Duda it is a little different. This time we are saying « end the homophobic presidency » and we also encourage our community to go and vote. The participation rates in the first row have never been as high since 1989. This is connected.We are expecting lots of hate speech to come out this week, so we got ready on monitoring Duda’s campaign. We also organise events such as silent protests.

 Are you supported by the population?

We did not start those protests ourselves. People were starting them spontaneously. The world of acadomia reacted with at least 20 universities issuing a statement against hate speech. Also not only did a lot of people go to vote, but they sometimes went wearing rainbow socks or other kinds of outfits to show why they were going to vote.

 It seems the political strategy of targeting the LGBTI people did not work that well this time. How do you analyse this?

Circumstances were different because of Covid-19. It changed different things. First, usually for their campaigns, politicians do researches, with focus groups, and adjust their strategy like marketing. But I think they did not do it this time –  they just went for the easy strategy and targeted LGBTI people but voters did not buy it. They were too frustrated and furious to believe it so much. And this is precisely also because of the virus. There was a lot of money  spent on equipment that did not reach people, the minister of health was heavily criticized, lots of people lost their jobs so there was anger. And blaming the LGBT community was not believable.

Did the virus also affect your organization?

Yes because it was very tricky to make our position. When Law and Justice and Duda who were very popular before the corona virus  decided they wanted to maintain the election despite the fact that everything was shut down, we did not know if the elections will be organized in the first term or whether it will be postponed. Whether  we should boycott the election or go anyway and get our health at risk. Finally, they decided to postpone the election.

Yes, the choice for strategy of activists are very tough to make during corona virus time. How are you keeping up between this and the tough campaign?

The bright side is, I have been working as an activist for nine years, and I have never seen much of what could be called a community. But because of this backlash, people are starting to come out more. A volunteer explained to me that she was at her workplace , and her colleagues were having a discussion about the Rainbow Friday action we organize at schools, and she could not stand what she was hearing. So she came out. This is a positive trend.

How do the media behave during this campaign?

The nation public tv is completely with Law and Justice and advise people to go and vote for Duda. They have breached every ethical stand. They never behave as journalists with us. They never approach us to ask questions. They just come to our office with their camera, when they want to point at us. And they never either ask for people from academia to comment the news. Their so called talking experts are right wing publicists. Those media are really using the same language as the fundamentalists groups. .They explain that lgbt want to teach four year olds to masturbate…Not to mention that this channel, the public tv, sent a fake volunteer to our association.

What???

Yes, TVP1 made this thirty minutes documentary called « Invasion » and broadcasted on TVP1. They infiltrated our organisation via a fake volunteer. I am featuring in this documentary and I was very angry about this. They recorded some of our volunteers who are not out at all. And they broadcasted this last fall, two days before the elections, during prime time between a presidential speech and a very important football game so there were so many people watching.

 When the European Lesbian Conference gathered in Ukraine, in April 2019, there were protests every day in front of the conference, in Kyiv. And it seems like they were protesting as much against the word « European » as the word « lesbian ». Is the fight against LGBTIs in Poland also a fight against Europe or is this as this article puts it a wrong way of looking at things?

For sure, there is a huge rhetoric about how the lgbt movement is all about western countries trend coming to destroy our values. And they keep using examples of Germany or The Netherlands as places which have turned bad because of same-sex mariages. However I think the European institutions should be careful about not to link the attribution of structural funds to Poland to the way the country treats LGBTI people. Because then it looks like it is because of LGBTs that money is taking away. The strategies are very difficult to elaborate, and we are working on it quite a lot with ILGA Europe.

What can activists do in Europe do to help you?

First, press their politicians to actually react to what is going on. Second, come to our Pride marches. When people from other countries come to our March, it makes them safer.

We will do our best with EL*C to come and march with you as soon as possible. By the way, is are there any specificities of how lesbians are targeted or reacting during those times?

Well when it comes to activists the community is coming together and I don’t see lesbians very different than gays. Everyone is suffering from the resolutions taken in LGBT free zones. But I think when it comes to constitutional symbols or measures, like the one on mariages or adoptions, then it impacts more women, single mothers, lesbians. Because more of them have rainbow families.

Russian journalist and out lesbian, Elena Dogadina writes about her orientation and LGBTI issues. She covers violence and discrimination in her country. Editor, trainer and human rights defender Temur Kobalia is the founder of NCO TV Russia and the Volgograd Human Rights Council. In the framework of a press tour organised by the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), the French LGBTI Journalists Association (AJL) met with the two Russian journalists. Following our partnership with AJL, we here produce a translation of this interview which was previously published in French.

What are the working conditions for journalists in Russia?

Elena Dogina: To put it simply, the media in Russia are divided into two categories: state-owned and independent media. Working for the latter one, I have more freedom to cover the stories I want to report, especially LGBT related stories. However, these media have much less impact. For instance, my parents who live in a small village are not affected .

Temur Kobalia: There are many laws that limit freedom of the press. The law prohibiting LGBT propaganda, for one, impacted directly on the treatment of these subjects. Another law requires employees of NGOs receiving funding from abroad to register as foreign agents or another one forces any blogger with more than 3000 daily readers to register his personal information with the government. However, this does not mean that we are dictated what to write! Once I get home, I shall write about these meetings that are currently taking place in France and these articles will be read by, on average, 4500 people.

ED : We can’t make the slightest concession. Otherwise, they will impose others on us and we will  become the Kremlin’s official media!

Are you scared for your safety?

ED: I am privileged enough to belong to the middle class. My wife owns her own apartment and we live in an area where I never experienced homophobia. So, no, I am not scared for my own safety. On the other hand, I am scared for the safety of those close to me: for my wife, who is not out publicly, and for my little sister, who could be bullied (a problem that is not taken into account at all by Russian institutions) or discrimination…

TK: I have been arrested before, searched, my passport has once been taken away and my organisation has had to pay a fine equivalent to 15,000 euros. One of my colleagues is under investigation… But that doesn’t stop us from doing our work.

ED: . We don’t know when, we don’t know which of our articles shall be the pretend reason, but we know that we risk an arrest… We learn to live with it: we can’t be afraid 7/7, 24/24. Personally, I am much less afraid since I am out as a lesbian: the threat of  outing no longer exists and I am no longer afraid of being rejected for who I am…

What is your view on how the media cover LGBTI issues?

ED: I am a journalist. I am a lesbian. Even though it is very important to talk about persecution in order to raise awareness, I think it is also very important to write about other aspects that are more positive for the community such as LGBT friendly events. It is necessary to write about all aspects of LGBT life, to interview as many people as possible, to get a better representation, a better visibility. It might inspire more people to come out.

TK : We face a lot of difficulties finding interviewees. Because they get scared or because they want to be paid, many of them don’t want to appear on activist shows. I regret this lack of involvement on their part. They are thus complicit in the government’s actions when they should be standing up to them!

ED: These are the words of a straight man! You cannot blame people for being afraid of reprisals!

TK : I wasn’t talking about people who are afraid but, for example, youtubers who talk about it openly but don’t want to come to our studio because they want to be paid.

How do you perceive the coverage of these issues by the media abroad?

ED: First of all, I have to say that I was astound at how little LGBT people are portrayed in the French media when your society is supposed to be more tolerant! To answer your question, I would say that, even if it unfortunately has very little impact (a constant huge part of the Russian population does not speak English and does not have access to the Internet), the coverage of LGBT stories in Russia by foreign media is important. On the one hand, it provides support to those who feel isolated and, on the other hand, it reminds the Russian authorities, who tend to forget, that they are part of the international community. Foreign media often focus on high-profile cases and thus force the authorities to react. That is very good. However, they should also see the many different stories to meet other people, other aspects that are also very interesting. Basically, let them deal with Russian LGBT issues as they deal with these issues at home.

[Many thanks to Elnara Mevolhon, interpreter, without whom this interview could not have taken place.]

Interviewed by Dimitri Jean and Sebastien Sass for the AJL.

Translated  by Alice Coffin with the help of www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)

Russian journalist and out lesbian, Elena Dogadina writes about her orientation and LGBTI issues. She covers violence and discrimination in her country. Editor, trainer and human rights defender Temur Kobalia is the founder of NCO TV Russia and the Volgograd Human Rights Council. In the framework of a press tour organised by the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), the French LGBTI Journalists Association (AJL) met with the two Russian journalists. Following our partnership with AJL, we here produce a translation of this interview which was previously published in French.

What are the working conditions for journalists in Russia?

Elena Dogina: To put it simply, the media in Russia are divided into two categories: state-owned and independent media. Working for the latter one, I have more freedom to cover the stories I want to report, especially LGBT related stories. However, these media have much less impact. For instance, my parents who live in a small village are not affected .

Temur Kobalia: There are many laws that limit freedom of the press. The law prohibiting LGBT propaganda, for one, impacted directly on the treatment of these subjects. Another law requires employees of NGOs receiving funding from abroad to register as foreign agents or another one forces any blogger with more than 3000 daily readers to register his personal information with the government. However, this does not mean that we are dictated what to write! Once I get home, I shall write about these meetings that are currently taking place in France and these articles will be read by, on average, 4500 people.

ED : We can’t make the slightest concession. Otherwise, they will impose others on us and we will  become the Kremlin’s official media!

Are you scared for your safety?

ED: I am privileged enough to belong to the middle class. My wife owns her own apartment and we live in an area where I never experienced homophobia. So, no, I am not scared for my own safety. On the other hand, I am scared for the safety of those close to me: for my wife, who is not out publicly, and for my little sister, who could be bullied (a problem that is not taken into account at all by Russian institutions) or discrimination…

TK: I have been arrested before, searched, my passport has once been taken away and my organisation has had to pay a fine equivalent to 15,000 euros. One of my colleagues is under investigation… But that doesn’t stop us from doing our work.

ED: . We don’t know when, we don’t know which of our articles shall be the pretend reason, but we know that we risk an arrest… We learn to live with it: we can’t be afraid 7/7, 24/24. Personally, I am much less afraid since I am out as a lesbian: the threat of  outing no longer exists and I am no longer afraid of being rejected for who I am…

What is your view on how the media cover LGBTI issues?

ED: I am a journalist. I am a lesbian. Even though it is very important to talk about persecution in order to raise awareness, I think it is also very important to write about other aspects that are more positive for the community such as LGBT friendly events. It is necessary to write about all aspects of LGBT life, to interview as many people as possible, to get a better representation, a better visibility. It might inspire more people to come out.

TK : We face a lot of difficulties finding interviewees. Because they get scared or because they want to be paid, many of them don’t want to appear on activist shows. I regret this lack of involvement on their part. They are thus complicit in the government’s actions when they should be standing up to them!

ED: These are the words of a straight man! You cannot blame people for being afraid of reprisals!

TK : I wasn’t talking about people who are afraid but, for example, youtubers who talk about it openly but don’t want to come to our studio because they want to be paid.

How do you perceive the coverage of these issues by the media abroad?

ED: First of all, I have to say that I was astound at how little LGBT people are portrayed in the French media when your society is supposed to be more tolerant! To answer your question, I would say that, even if it unfortunately has very little impact (a constant huge part of the Russian population does not speak English and does not have access to the Internet), the coverage of LGBT stories in Russia by foreign media is important. On the one hand, it provides support to those who feel isolated and, on the other hand, it reminds the Russian authorities, who tend to forget, that they are part of the international community. Foreign media often focus on high-profile cases and thus force the authorities to react. That is very good. However, they should also see the many different stories to meet other people, other aspects that are also very interesting. Basically, let them deal with Russian LGBT issues as they deal with these issues at home.

[Many thanks to Elnara Mevolhon, interpreter, without whom this interview could not have taken place.]

Interviewed by Dimitri Jean and Sebastien Sass for the AJL.

Translated  by Alice Coffin with the help of www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)

[efcb-section-media title=”Lesbian Genius Talks” title_icon=” tv” hide_filters=” ” background_color=” ” title_font_color=” ” icon_font_color=” ” id=”ui-id-14-1589815969365118″ entities=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1Rf0uNHBM4,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QiIutPRza3o,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVargcKfKIk,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbXxF3AGQBc,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zc_Xx-6eD0g,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkuZiGMNZQU,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVYD5UeU-VQ,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJCpW-b9i4o,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZA6lsah-WI,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3RhOmTY3fgo,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhGBgXF_9xY,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jS07jlKX07g”][/efcb-section-media]

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Russian, French; Italian; Spanish; Serbian below :::

In the current crisis caused by the COVID-19, lesbian* communities find themselves in particularly precarious situations. EL*C has been in touch with the lesbian* community, lesbian* organizations from Europe and Central Asia, and we are continuously receiving information, learning about what they are currently going through, both in their activist work and their personal lives. 

We are observing lesbians being trapped in potentially dangerous situations due to the crisis, from young lesbians obliged to quarantine with their lesbophobic families, to older lesbians that cannot go out, do not have family on which to rely on, and are provided food and medication by the local lesbian community. Lesbians are being fired by their employer, as a result of their families not being recognised as equal to heterosexual ones, or not recognised at all. 

We are also witnessing with great concern the recent attacks in some of the countries against the trans community and against women’s rights, specifically their sexual and reproductive rights. These acts of violence demonstrate how the crisis is being instrumentalised, in some contexts, to roll back on the rights of minorities and on women’s bodily autonomy. Lesbian movements, often at the forefront of the fight for women’s and LGBTI rights, constitute an easy target for nationalist, far-right and anti-gender narratives, and are in particular need of support during the current crisis. 

Consequently, we are constantly trying to come up with plans and strategies on how to be of help, and also how to hold on to the lessons that we will inevitably learn in this crisis and how to make the solutions sustainable and secure resilience of the movement. As one of the many measures that we are currently undertaking, we have decided to establish an EL*C Urgent Response Fund, to be able to financially support the lesbian movement. The call for applications is now open. 

Small grants are intended only for lesbian led and lesbian* groups in Europe and Central Asia, that are working primarily on supporting and advancing the position of lesbian communities. Lesbian* groups can be registered and not-registered. These grants are not intended to support individual applicants.   

Small grants can only be used in response to the Covid-19 crises, which may include: Direct support and services to the lesbian community (such as food, shelter, psychosocial support, etc.); Advocacy activities (such as advocating for Covid-19 response measures that are inclusive of lesbian needs and interests); Communication and campaigning activities (such as social media campaigns, press clipping, online tools, etc); Operating costs (such as office costs, rent, utilities, etc)

Grants can range from 500 EUR up to 3000 EUR.  

There is no deadline to apply, as EL*C will be receiving applications on rolling bases, subject to funding availability. EL*C Selection Committee will be evaluating applications as they come, and will be informing applicants as soon as possible.

This application form is in English, and we encourage you to use this language, as it will facilitate our evaluation processes. Your English doesn’t need to be perfect, and you can also use different translation tools, such as Google translate, to translate to/from your local language. In case this is not possible for you, send us an email, and we will do our best to provide you support in your local language.  

Please, fill out the form below as precisely and concretely as possible. In case you have any questions or need support with filling out the form, please: send us an email: info@lesbiangenius.net or connect on May 19, 2020 at 01:00 pm CEST via Zoom Meeting at this address https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85069655187.

=> You can apply by clicking on this link <=

About the term “lesbian”

Our aim is to have an inclusive European and Central Asian Network. We insist on calling it a lesbian although we recognize that, as with any category or label, it may be contested and insufficient to describe the diversity of our communities. We are aware that many previous lesbian gatherings have struggled with issues about who should or should not be included. However, using the word “lesbian” is part of the political struggle for visibility, empowerment and representation. We therefore use “lesbian*” in our name with an asterisk, so as to include anyone who identifies as lesbian, feminist, bi, trans or queer, and all those who feel connected to lesbian activism.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Фонд Срочной Поддержки от EL*C:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1QBbOiDAi59BMgRn2icoNvVV528ShN7krudG04BIfe84/edit

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Subventions d’urgence EL*C:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1fPfNo_TYWbCDNm40IsQfOeUBQt42nI09vKNf-cJCWqM/edit

Sovvenzioni di emergenza EL*C: 

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1T0Vu_WPxMZNCbqDGutk-eJhnHAXewJJN0kzn_us-O8w/edit

Subvenciones de emergencia de la EL*C:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1EJzQKwu6dlM1Dcc5jwMKuUQAo7Q284Pn9FSPUUbtMXk/edit

EL*C hitne donacije: 

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1TKe-kSd-RJQmo721StBtHl-Zq4jua4tkMONuQ9LTKj4/edit

Russian, French; Italian; Spanish; Serbian below :::

In the current crisis caused by the COVID-19, lesbian* communities find themselves in particularly precarious situations. EL*C has been in touch with the lesbian* community, lesbian* organizations from Europe and Central Asia, and we are continuously receiving information, learning about what they are currently going through, both in their activist work and their personal lives. 

We are observing lesbians being trapped in potentially dangerous situations due to the crisis, from young lesbians obliged to quarantine with their lesbophobic families, to older lesbians that cannot go out, do not have family on which to rely on, and are provided food and medication by the local lesbian community. Lesbians are being fired by their employer, as a result of their families not being recognised as equal to heterosexual ones, or not recognised at all. 

We are also witnessing with great concern the recent attacks in some of the countries against the trans community and against women’s rights, specifically their sexual and reproductive rights. These acts of violence demonstrate how the crisis is being instrumentalised, in some contexts, to roll back on the rights of minorities and on women’s bodily autonomy. Lesbian movements, often at the forefront of the fight for women’s and LGBTI rights, constitute an easy target for nationalist, far-right and anti-gender narratives, and are in particular need of support during the current crisis. 

Consequently, we are constantly trying to come up with plans and strategies on how to be of help, and also how to hold on to the lessons that we will inevitably learn in this crisis and how to make the solutions sustainable and secure resilience of the movement. As one of the many measures that we are currently undertaking, we have decided to establish an EL*C Urgent Response Fund, to be able to financially support the lesbian movement. The call for applications is now open. 

Small grants are intended only for lesbian led and lesbian* groups in Europe and Central Asia, that are working primarily on supporting and advancing the position of lesbian communities. Lesbian* groups can be registered and not-registered. These grants are not intended to support individual applicants.   

Small grants can only be used in response to the Covid-19 crises, which may include: Direct support and services to the lesbian community (such as food, shelter, psychosocial support, etc.); Advocacy activities (such as advocating for Covid-19 response measures that are inclusive of lesbian needs and interests); Communication and campaigning activities (such as social media campaigns, press clipping, online tools, etc); Operating costs (such as office costs, rent, utilities, etc)

Grants can range from 500 EUR up to 3000 EUR.  

There is no deadline to apply, as EL*C will be receiving applications on rolling bases, subject to funding availability. EL*C Selection Committee will be evaluating applications as they come, and will be informing applicants as soon as possible.

This application form is in English, and we encourage you to use this language, as it will facilitate our evaluation processes. Your English doesn’t need to be perfect, and you can also use different translation tools, such as Google translate, to translate to/from your local language. In case this is not possible for you, send us an email, and we will do our best to provide you support in your local language.  

Please, fill out the form below as precisely and concretely as possible. In case you have any questions or need support with filling out the form, please: send us an email: info@lesbiangenius.net or connect on May 19, 2020 at 01:00 pm CEST via Zoom Meeting at this address https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85069655187.

=> You can apply by clicking on this link <=

About the term “lesbian”

Our aim is to have an inclusive European and Central Asian Network. We insist on calling it a lesbian although we recognize that, as with any category or label, it may be contested and insufficient to describe the diversity of our communities. We are aware that many previous lesbian gatherings have struggled with issues about who should or should not be included. However, using the word “lesbian” is part of the political struggle for visibility, empowerment and representation. We therefore use “lesbian*” in our name with an asterisk, so as to include anyone who identifies as lesbian, feminist, bi, trans or queer, and all those who feel connected to lesbian activism.

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Фонд Срочной Поддержки от EL*C:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1QBbOiDAi59BMgRn2icoNvVV528ShN7krudG04BIfe84/edit

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Subventions d’urgence EL*C:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1fPfNo_TYWbCDNm40IsQfOeUBQt42nI09vKNf-cJCWqM/edit

Sovvenzioni di emergenza EL*C: 

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1T0Vu_WPxMZNCbqDGutk-eJhnHAXewJJN0kzn_us-O8w/edit

Subvenciones de emergencia de la EL*C:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1EJzQKwu6dlM1Dcc5jwMKuUQAo7Q284Pn9FSPUUbtMXk/edit

EL*C hitne donacije: 

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1TKe-kSd-RJQmo721StBtHl-Zq4jua4tkMONuQ9LTKj4/edit

Milena Marković, a nurse in a centre dedicated to the fight against the disease, and Dragana Todorović, co-executive director for development of the Eurocentralasian Lesbian* Community (EL*C), join us in reviewing the situation of lesbians in their country and in the region, and address the difficulties they face during this pandemic .

(This interview was first published by the French Association of LGBTI Journalists. The questions are from Marion Lefèvre. The translation is by Alice Coffin with the help of DeepL, aptly named translation site).

What is the situation for lesbians in Serbia and the Balkans?

Dragana Todorović: Today it is still very complicated for lesbians and more broadly for LGBTI people in Serbia and the Balkans. Lesbophobia is very strong there. On average, more than 70% of the population thinks that being gay is a disease. Almost every second a lesbian in the Balkans is a victim of psychological or physical violence. Throughout the region, lesbians do not have access to medically assisted procreation. Yet since the 1990s, lesbians have been at the forefront of women’s rights and peace movements. One of those early organizations, LABRIS, was founded in Belgrade and is still active today. But it is the exception that proves the rule: in other countries, lesbian organizations have little power. Many of them have had to close down due to a lack of funding. Today, the issue of lesbian rights and interests is very little visible and in our societies, even within the women’s rights and LGBTI movements.

In Serbia, the situation is paradoxical as we have a lesbian Prime Minister [Ana Brnabić]. But she belongs to a right wing party [the Serbian Progressive Party] that does not campaign on human rights, LGBTI rights or women’s rights. One can however imagine, hopefully having a lesbian in government will positively change the attitudes of the conservative supporters of that party. Milena has been in personal contact with the Prime Minister, perhaps she will talk about it better than I do.

Milena Marković: I don’t see the situation the way Dragana does, because I’m not working as an activist, surely. I don’t have any problem in Serbia to be a lesbian… Except with my parents! (laughs) I understand that for other people, however, it is complicated.

And yes, I met the Prime Minister because I wrote to her five or six months ago to ask her to help me create an organisation for gay and lesbian families, because we have many who have contacted us to ask for help. I’m the only person she wrote to about LGBTI rights.

DT: Yes, a lot of LGBTI organisations have written to her in the last few years, but she has only replied to Milena. They have exchanged several emails…

MM: And one day she invited me to meet her. I went, I wasn’t prepared at all… We had an interesting conversation, I enjoyed it. She was very open and ready to talk about the situation in the country for LGBTI organisations.

DT: She was very open and ready to take the initiative on several projects. But these meetings have taken place recently [early 2020], so we will see if it takes shape. I have a lot of criticisms of her but I would like her to stay on. Her party has a large majority, no one can dethrone her. I would rather it be her than any other man.

I think the fact that she is the head of the government gives us an opportunity. But I don’t like the way she reacts to criticism from LGBTI organisations. She should be able to accept public criticism. And apart from participating in Pride parades (a first for a head of government) and supporting Belgrade’s bid to host Europride in 2022, she has done nothing so far.

Precisely, the situation being the one you describe, Dragana, you have been fighting for several years for the rights of lesbians and LGBTI people in your country and in the rest of the region. What is the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on your activities?
DT: With ERA [LGBTI Equal Rights Association for Western Balkans and Turkey, in which Dragana is still active], since 2015 we have been trying to reach the most isolated people. Since the beginning of the health crisis, we have realised how difficult this situation has made life difficult for older people, especially lesbians over 65 years old. In Serbia, people of that age can no longer go out at all. It is very hard for them, especially for lesbians: the overwhelming majority of those we are in contact with have no family, no children, and of course they are not married [civil union and same-sex marriage are not allowed in Serbia].

I was talking to one of them recently: her friends are dead, she is completely isolated. Certainly the Serbian government has set up a volunteer system to help these people, with volunteers who can go shopping for them. But she does not feel comfortable with this system, because she fears lesbophobia, which is very present in our society. Another woman told me that she could no longer collect her pension because she or a family member has to collect it, and she had no family either.

Not only older lesbians are affected: we have received testimonies from younger lesbians through Locked-down Lesbians Listening [a daily virtual platform set up by the Eurocentralasian Lesbian Community]. Some of them lost their jobs, as many were employed in the service sector (bars, restaurants…). They can no longer pay their rent and sometimes have to return to their families, often lesbophobic. This is a dangerous situation for them because they are likely to be subjected to violence. We are in contact with more than fifty lesbians in these situations throughout the Balkans, but they are surely more numerous. Who knows how many lesbians dare not contact us. Some only call us when it is really a matter of life and death.

In addition to these difficulties, lesbians in the Balkans are also for some of them on the front line of the fight against the pandemic, like you, Milena. You are a nurse in a psychiatric hospital, outside of the pandemic, and have been working in a centre dedicated to the patients of Covid-19 since the beginning of the crisis. What does it mean for you to be a lesbian nurse in this context?

MM: I am far from being the only lesbian in this case! But the others aren’t out. I don’t think I’m special, I just do my job. But it’s true that this pandemic is forcing people to be more open to diversity, more tolerant, especially of different sexual orientations. Every day, I have to come out because all my colleagues talk about their children, and I talk about my family too. It’s a completely different situation, but they accept it. Sometimes I also ask them if they now understand what it is like to be stuck at home, as some LGBTI people normally are. They tell me that they are sorry and understand better. They had no way of knowing before what it is like, not being able to go where you want, not being able to be yourself.

One of the blind spots in the media in western Europe, and I imagine in the Balkans as well, is the impact of Covid-19 on the lives of same-sex families, particularly lesbian families. Can you tell us how the pandemic played out in your family organization, with Milena?

DT : Before the pandemic, Milena was the one who took care of the children the most. I work in a different city, and I have two jobs, I travel a lot, so I’m away a lot. Since Milena volunteered to work in the newly created Covid-19 centre, she moved to my old apartment so as not to put me and the children in danger. They don’t go to school anymore, so they take online courses. I’m with them all the time, it’s the exact opposite of the normal situation. It’s pretty positive, from my perspective. I spend more time connecting with them.

Meanwhile, Milena, you’re treating the sick. Can you tell us about your daily life?

MM: I’m exhausted. There aren’t many nurses who have volunteered to work with us, many of them are on sick leave. There are only 30 of us in intensive care. It’s very hard to work there because there aren’t enough of us to be replaced. I don’t fear for my health, but I don’t know how long this can last.

DT: You should know that there are normally more than 3,000 nurses in the hospital. Only 30 are volunteers, and Milena is far from being the only lesbian. My conclusion? When shit hits the fan, lesbians are there. It’s representative of their role in history. They fight but they don’t get the recognition and visibility they deserve. On TV, all the people who talk are men: doctors, politicians. But if we go to see who really fights alongside patients, they are women, and often they are lesbians. I think it’s important to say that.

In your opinion, is this the only blindspot in the national and regional media coverage of this pandemic?

DT : It’s hard to say. Personally, I find that the media is very controlled. On TV, they say that the crisis is under control, that the government is handling the situation well, even that Serbia has the best crisis management at the European level. Citizen journalists report on the problems on the ground. Today things are better, but two weeks ago, in some hospitals, staff had only one mask for 12 hours of work. One journalist [Ana Lalić] was even arrested and imprisoned for publishing an article with testimonies from doctors and nurses. The hospital where Milena works passed a note to the nurses asking them not to speak to journalists or risk being fired.

The Covid-19 crisis has shown that we are still living in a young democracy with fragile and unstable institutions. It also revealed authoritarian tendencies, especially in the region and in Serbia, especially as regards the media. Here, politicians use the situation as an excuse to censor the media and throw journalists into prison. This did not happen until recently. I am concerned that the government is taking advantage of the state of emergency that has been established to violate human rights. Once it starts, there is no turning back.

MM: Personally, I don’t think we can talk about freedom of the press as we normally do. In my work, there is no place for politics, no place for the press, there is no place for anything except taking care of people and caring for them as best we can. It’s very different from what we imagine: here we’re talking about saving someone’s life. At the moment, we don’t have time to think about anything else.

The parliamentary and municipal elections in Serbia were supposed to take place today, but they were postponed because of the situation. What impact do you think this postponement could have on the scores of right-wing and far-right parties? Is there a risk that the situation for LGBTI people in Serbia could get worse?

DT: I think the party in government will win the elections again, the crisis has not affected their popularity at all. They have probably even gained a few points since they control the media and information. I expect them to win 60% or more of the votes. I have no idea how this will affect the situation for LGBTI people. We will see, it is very difficult to predict anything in such a situation. When they arrested this journalist, I was very shocked, I thought these cases were far behind us. But in fact everything can change from one day to the next. The human rights acquired can be swept away in an instant, and we risk going backwards. This is what is happening for freedom of the press at the moment, it is possible that it will also happen for the rights of LGBTI people and women. Serbia has recently moved closer to countries such as China and Russia, which worries me very much. We have to wait and see what happens. But always be attentive, observe what is happening and be ready.

Milena Marković, a nurse in a centre dedicated to the fight against the disease, and Dragana Todorović, co-executive director for development of the Eurocentralasian Lesbian* Community (EL*C), join us in reviewing the situation of lesbians in their country and in the region, and address the difficulties they face during this pandemic .

(This interview was first published by the French Association of LGBTI Journalists. The questions are from Marion Lefèvre. The translation is by Alice Coffin with the help of DeepL, aptly named translation site).

What is the situation for lesbians in Serbia and the Balkans?

Dragana Todorović: Today it is still very complicated for lesbians and more broadly for LGBTI people in Serbia and the Balkans. Lesbophobia is very strong there. On average, more than 70% of the population thinks that being gay is a disease. Almost every second a lesbian in the Balkans is a victim of psychological or physical violence. Throughout the region, lesbians do not have access to medically assisted procreation. Yet since the 1990s, lesbians have been at the forefront of women’s rights and peace movements. One of those early organizations, LABRIS, was founded in Belgrade and is still active today. But it is the exception that proves the rule: in other countries, lesbian organizations have little power. Many of them have had to close down due to a lack of funding. Today, the issue of lesbian rights and interests is very little visible and in our societies, even within the women’s rights and LGBTI movements.

In Serbia, the situation is paradoxical as we have a lesbian Prime Minister [Ana Brnabić]. But she belongs to a right wing party [the Serbian Progressive Party] that does not campaign on human rights, LGBTI rights or women’s rights. One can however imagine, hopefully having a lesbian in government will positively change the attitudes of the conservative supporters of that party. Milena has been in personal contact with the Prime Minister, perhaps she will talk about it better than I do.

Milena Marković: I don’t see the situation the way Dragana does, because I’m not working as an activist, surely. I don’t have any problem in Serbia to be a lesbian… Except with my parents! (laughs) I understand that for other people, however, it is complicated.

And yes, I met the Prime Minister because I wrote to her five or six months ago to ask her to help me create an organisation for gay and lesbian families, because we have many who have contacted us to ask for help. I’m the only person she wrote to about LGBTI rights.

DT: Yes, a lot of LGBTI organisations have written to her in the last few years, but she has only replied to Milena. They have exchanged several emails…

MM: And one day she invited me to meet her. I went, I wasn’t prepared at all… We had an interesting conversation, I enjoyed it. She was very open and ready to talk about the situation in the country for LGBTI organisations.

DT: She was very open and ready to take the initiative on several projects. But these meetings have taken place recently [early 2020], so we will see if it takes shape. I have a lot of criticisms of her but I would like her to stay on. Her party has a large majority, no one can dethrone her. I would rather it be her than any other man.

I think the fact that she is the head of the government gives us an opportunity. But I don’t like the way she reacts to criticism from LGBTI organisations. She should be able to accept public criticism. And apart from participating in Pride parades (a first for a head of government) and supporting Belgrade’s bid to host Europride in 2022, she has done nothing so far.

Precisely, the situation being the one you describe, Dragana, you have been fighting for several years for the rights of lesbians and LGBTI people in your country and in the rest of the region. What is the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on your activities?
DT: With ERA [LGBTI Equal Rights Association for Western Balkans and Turkey, in which Dragana is still active], since 2015 we have been trying to reach the most isolated people. Since the beginning of the health crisis, we have realised how difficult this situation has made life difficult for older people, especially lesbians over 65 years old. In Serbia, people of that age can no longer go out at all. It is very hard for them, especially for lesbians: the overwhelming majority of those we are in contact with have no family, no children, and of course they are not married [civil union and same-sex marriage are not allowed in Serbia].

I was talking to one of them recently: her friends are dead, she is completely isolated. Certainly the Serbian government has set up a volunteer system to help these people, with volunteers who can go shopping for them. But she does not feel comfortable with this system, because she fears lesbophobia, which is very present in our society. Another woman told me that she could no longer collect her pension because she or a family member has to collect it, and she had no family either.

Not only older lesbians are affected: we have received testimonies from younger lesbians through Locked-down Lesbians Listening [a daily virtual platform set up by the Eurocentralasian Lesbian Community]. Some of them lost their jobs, as many were employed in the service sector (bars, restaurants…). They can no longer pay their rent and sometimes have to return to their families, often lesbophobic. This is a dangerous situation for them because they are likely to be subjected to violence. We are in contact with more than fifty lesbians in these situations throughout the Balkans, but they are surely more numerous. Who knows how many lesbians dare not contact us. Some only call us when it is really a matter of life and death.

In addition to these difficulties, lesbians in the Balkans are also for some of them on the front line of the fight against the pandemic, like you, Milena. You are a nurse in a psychiatric hospital, outside of the pandemic, and have been working in a centre dedicated to the patients of Covid-19 since the beginning of the crisis. What does it mean for you to be a lesbian nurse in this context?

MM: I am far from being the only lesbian in this case! But the others aren’t out. I don’t think I’m special, I just do my job. But it’s true that this pandemic is forcing people to be more open to diversity, more tolerant, especially of different sexual orientations. Every day, I have to come out because all my colleagues talk about their children, and I talk about my family too. It’s a completely different situation, but they accept it. Sometimes I also ask them if they now understand what it is like to be stuck at home, as some LGBTI people normally are. They tell me that they are sorry and understand better. They had no way of knowing before what it is like, not being able to go where you want, not being able to be yourself.

One of the blind spots in the media in western Europe, and I imagine in the Balkans as well, is the impact of Covid-19 on the lives of same-sex families, particularly lesbian families. Can you tell us how the pandemic played out in your family organization, with Milena?

DT : Before the pandemic, Milena was the one who took care of the children the most. I work in a different city, and I have two jobs, I travel a lot, so I’m away a lot. Since Milena volunteered to work in the newly created Covid-19 centre, she moved to my old apartment so as not to put me and the children in danger. They don’t go to school anymore, so they take online courses. I’m with them all the time, it’s the exact opposite of the normal situation. It’s pretty positive, from my perspective. I spend more time connecting with them.

Meanwhile, Milena, you’re treating the sick. Can you tell us about your daily life?

MM: I’m exhausted. There aren’t many nurses who have volunteered to work with us, many of them are on sick leave. There are only 30 of us in intensive care. It’s very hard to work there because there aren’t enough of us to be replaced. I don’t fear for my health, but I don’t know how long this can last.

DT: You should know that there are normally more than 3,000 nurses in the hospital. Only 30 are volunteers, and Milena is far from being the only lesbian. My conclusion? When shit hits the fan, lesbians are there. It’s representative of their role in history. They fight but they don’t get the recognition and visibility they deserve. On TV, all the people who talk are men: doctors, politicians. But if we go to see who really fights alongside patients, they are women, and often they are lesbians. I think it’s important to say that.

In your opinion, is this the only blindspot in the national and regional media coverage of this pandemic?

DT : It’s hard to say. Personally, I find that the media is very controlled. On TV, they say that the crisis is under control, that the government is handling the situation well, even that Serbia has the best crisis management at the European level. Citizen journalists report on the problems on the ground. Today things are better, but two weeks ago, in some hospitals, staff had only one mask for 12 hours of work. One journalist [Ana Lalić] was even arrested and imprisoned for publishing an article with testimonies from doctors and nurses. The hospital where Milena works passed a note to the nurses asking them not to speak to journalists or risk being fired.

The Covid-19 crisis has shown that we are still living in a young democracy with fragile and unstable institutions. It also revealed authoritarian tendencies, especially in the region and in Serbia, especially as regards the media. Here, politicians use the situation as an excuse to censor the media and throw journalists into prison. This did not happen until recently. I am concerned that the government is taking advantage of the state of emergency that has been established to violate human rights. Once it starts, there is no turning back.

MM: Personally, I don’t think we can talk about freedom of the press as we normally do. In my work, there is no place for politics, no place for the press, there is no place for anything except taking care of people and caring for them as best we can. It’s very different from what we imagine: here we’re talking about saving someone’s life. At the moment, we don’t have time to think about anything else.

The parliamentary and municipal elections in Serbia were supposed to take place today, but they were postponed because of the situation. What impact do you think this postponement could have on the scores of right-wing and far-right parties? Is there a risk that the situation for LGBTI people in Serbia could get worse?

DT: I think the party in government will win the elections again, the crisis has not affected their popularity at all. They have probably even gained a few points since they control the media and information. I expect them to win 60% or more of the votes. I have no idea how this will affect the situation for LGBTI people. We will see, it is very difficult to predict anything in such a situation. When they arrested this journalist, I was very shocked, I thought these cases were far behind us. But in fact everything can change from one day to the next. The human rights acquired can be swept away in an instant, and we risk going backwards. This is what is happening for freedom of the press at the moment, it is possible that it will also happen for the rights of LGBTI people and women. Serbia has recently moved closer to countries such as China and Russia, which worries me very much. We have to wait and see what happens. But always be attentive, observe what is happening and be ready.