Parada ponosa 2002: Bilten

From a road past intolerance to a march for tolerance
Žiga Mujakić

In June 2001, a gay activist Brane Mozetič and his Canadian guest, poet Jean Paul Daoust, went to the café Galerija, right in the centre of Ljubljana. Their intention to drink a cup of coffee came across an obstacle right at the door. A member of the security staff refused to allow them inside and told them that the café they had chosen, is not for "that kind of people". The event was followed by a protest of lesbian and gay organisations, some journalists let their imagination flow and kept reporting about the two men as of a gay "couple". At first sight, this is a small mistake, but exactly it is an evidence of stereotypes about gays, which are still more the rule than an exception in the Slovenian society. How quickly were two gay men, who were just strolling in the street, proclaimed for a couple. As if friendship between two men would not be possible?

What followed was a quick response of lesbian and gay groups, which prepared a Road Past Intolerance - March Against Homophobia, together with the Office for Interventions. Organising a manifestation that grew into a parade is not easy. Surprisingly, many people took part in the march, all daily newspapers reported about the event, favourable and rich reports were published by weekly Mladina, but absolutely nothing was mentioned about the march by the national TV. As if lesbians and gays had not been paying the TV subscription as all the others.

The autumn came and with it Mr. Rugelj1. In the interwiev for a magazine with a grotesque title Sodobnost (Contemporaineity) he explained for instance why the official medicine does not tr y to heal homosexuals (anymore). According to him, we are too "handicapped"2. In the interview, he enumerates a few insulting words about single women, Moslem women, poets etc. A denunciation followed, but was later overruled by the prosecutor, thus the Slovenian judicial system and the public missing an opportunity to comprehend the term hate-speech.

A while ago, the first official reception by any of the country's leading politicians of the lesbian and gay organisations' representatives took place. The president of the National Assembly Borut Pahor listened to Tatjana Greif (ŠKUC-LL) and Miha Lobnik (Legebitra). Whether the visit will have any concrete result is now still unknown of, promises and expressions of good will are not enough and do not change anything. They do not change the fast that the right to motherhood of single women was to be decided at a referendum and taken away from them with a blessing of the people. They do not drown the statements about homosexuality as a dead-end of the humanity, they do not change the fact that the youth through the course of their education do not receive relevant information about homosexuality and tolerance towards the different. After all, they do not erase the disgusting homophobic remarks at the net forums after the victory of Sestre at a selection for the Eurosong 2002. It has all gone so far that not long ago an actor of the series TV Dober dan was beaten, only because he played a homosexual guy in the series.

Slovenia is on its way to the European Union, it keeps fulfilling the demands of the EU and closing several chapters of negotiations. However, when are we finally going to open the chapter on equality of lesbians and gays?

1Mr. Rugelj is a controversial Slovenian psychiatrist with extremely conservative views, not without defenders in the society
2The original word is an insulting word with a entirely negative connotation, the meaning ranges from stupid to limited in spirit.

Od obvoznice mimo nestrpnosti do pohoda za strpnost Žiga Mujakić Junija 2001 sta se gejevski aktivist Brane Mozetič in njegov kanadski gost, pesnik Jean Paul Daoust, odpravila v Café Galerija v samem središču Ljubljane. Njun namen, da bi spila skodelico kave se je izjalovil že pri vhodu. Varnostnik jima je namreč preprečil vstop, saj lokal, ki sta si ga izbrala, menda ni za "take". Dogodku je sledil protest lezbičnih in gejevskih organizacij, nekateri novinarji so pustili prosto pot domišljiji in vztrajno poročali o gejevskem "paru". Na prvi pogled nedolžen lapsus razodeva eno izmed stereotipnih predstav o gejih, ki so v slovenski družbi še vedno bolj pravilo kot izjema. Kako hitro sta bila dva geja, ki sta le hodila po ulici, proglašena za par. Mar zgolj prijateljstvo med dvema gejema ni mogoče? Sledil je hiter odziv lezbičnih in gejevskih skupin, ki so skupaj z Uradom za intervencije pripravile Obvoznico mimo nestrpnosti - Pohod proti homofobiji. Organizirati takšno manifestacijo, ki je prerasla v pravcato parado, ni mačji kašelj. Udeležilo se je je presenetljivo veliko ljudi, o dogodku so poročali vsi dnevni časopisi, izčrpno in naklonjeno tednik Mladina, javna televizija pa nič. Kot da lezbijke in geji ne plačujemo televizijske naročnine kot vsi ostali. Prišla je jesen in z njo Rugelj. Tedaj je v intervjuju za revijo z grotesknim naslovom Sodobnost med drugim pojasnil, zakaj uradna medicina homosekusalcev ne zdravi (več). Menda zato ker smo preveč "zarukani". V intervjuju je izrekel še nekaj žaljivih besed na račun samskih žensk, muslimank, pesnikov itd. Sledila je ovadba, ki je doživela neslaven konec in priložnost, da bi slovensko sodstvo in javnost dojeli pojem sovražnega govora, je splavala po vodi. Pred kratkim se je zgodil prvi uradni sprejem predstavnikov lezbičnih in gejevskih organizacij s strani državnega vrha. Tatjani Greif (ŠKUC-LL) in Mihu Lobniku (Legebitra) je prisluhnil predsednik Državnega zbora Borut Pahor. Ali bo imel obisk kakšne konkretne rezultate še ne vemo, obljube in izrazi dobre volje sami po sebi namreč ne spreminjajo ničesar. Ne spreminjajo dejstva, da je bila pravica samskih žensk do materinstva dana v referendumsko presojo in z blagoslovom državljanov odvzeta, ne preglasijo izjav o homoseksualnosti kot suhi veji človeštva, ne spreminjajo dejstva, da mladi o homoseksualnosti in strpnosti do drugačnih tekom šolanja ne dobijo (relevantnih) informacij in ne izbrišejo neokusnih homofobičnih izjav na internetnih forumih po zmagi Sester na Emi 2002. Vse skupaj je šlo tako daleč, da jih je nedavno skupil igralec serije TV Dober dan, ker nastopa v vlogi homoseksualnega Luka. Slovenija je na poti v Evropsko unijo, izpolnjuje njene zahteve in zapira številna poglavja. Kdaj pa se bomo končno lotili poglavja o enakopravnosti lezbijk in gejev?		From a road past intolerance to a march for tolerance Žiga Mujakić In June 2001, a gay activist Brane Mozetič and his Canadian guest, poet Jean Paul Daoust, went to the café Galerija, right in the centre of Ljubljana. Their intention to drink a cup of coffee came across an obstacle right at the door. A member of the security staff refused to allow them inside and told them that the café they had chosen, is not for "that kind of people". The event was followed by a protest of lesbian and gay organisations, some journalists let their imagination flow and kept reporting about the two men as of a gay "couple". At first sight, this is a small mistake, but exactly it is an evidence of stereotypes about gays, which are still more the rule than an exception in the Slovenian society. How quickly were two gay men, who were just strolling in the street, proclaimed for a couple. As if friendship between two men would not be possible? What followed was a quick response of lesbian and gay groups, which prepared a Road Past Intolerance - March Against Homophobia, together with the Office for Interventions. Organising a manifestation that grew into a parade is not easy. Surprisingly, many people took part in the march, all daily newspapers reported about the event, favourable and rich reports were published by weekly Mladina, but absolutely nothing was mentioned about the march by the national TV. As if lesbians and gays had not been paying the TV subscription as all the others. The autumn came and with it Mr. Rugelj1. In the interwiev for a magazine with a grotesque title Sodobnost (Contemporaineity) he explained for instance why the official medicine does not tr y to heal homosexuals (anymore). According to him, we are too "handicapped"2. In the interview, he enumerates a few insulting words about single women, Moslem women, poets etc. A denunciation followed, but was later overruled by the prosecutor, thus the Slovenian judicial system and the public missing an opportunity to comprehend the term hate-speech. A while ago, the first official reception by any of the country's leading politicians of the lesbian and gay organisations' representatives took place. The president of the National Assembly Borut Pahor listened to Tatjana Greif (ŠKUC-LL) and Miha Lobnik (Legebitra). Whether the visit will have any concrete result is now still unknown of, promises and expressions of good will are not enough and do not change anything. They do not change the fast that the right to motherhood of single women was to be decided at a referendum and taken away from them with a blessing of the people. They do not drown the statements about homosexuality as a dead-end of the humanity, they do not change the fact that the youth through the course of their education do not receive relevant information about homosexuality and tolerance towards the different. After all, they do not erase the disgusting homophobic remarks at the net forums after the victory of Sestre at a selection for the Eurosong 2002. It has all gone so far that not long ago an actor of the series TV Dober dan was beaten, only because he played a homosexual guy in the series. Slovenia is on its way to the European Union, it keeps fulfilling the demands of the EU and closing several chapters of negotiations. However, when are we finally going to open the chapter on equality of lesbians and gays? 1Mr. Rugelj is a controversial Slovenian psychiatrist with extremely conservative views, not without defenders in the society 2The original word is an insulting word with a entirely negative connotation, the meaning ranges from stupid to limited in spirit.