During last week’s plenary session in Strasbourg, the European Parliament discussed recent legislation targeting the LGBTQ+ community. Namely, the debate regarded two laws that have been passed in Bulgaria and in Hungary. Bulgaria’s law limits education and discussion in schools on sexual orientations and gender identities that are deemed as ‘non-traditional’. Hungary’s law censors the portrayal of LGBTQ+ persons in schools, media and bookstores. Currently, Hungary is undergoing hearings at the Court of Justice of the European Union about the law’s potential violations of Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union.
In the plenary debate, members of the European Parliament (MEPs) criticized these laws in Bulgaria and Hungary, as well as Italy’s current LGBTQ+ hostile politics. The immense harm that such laws can have on young members of the LGBTQ+ community was repeatedly mentioned. Dutch MEP Tineke Strik from the Greens/ EFA group applauded the defending of human rights by the Commission, European Parliament and 16 Member States in the court case against Hungary’s anti-LGBTQ+ law, pointing towards the desperate need the queer community in Hungary had felt for this support. Strik called for further action against Hungary, Bulgaria and Italy on the basis of EU values, such as the protection of fundamental rights, democracy and the rule of law. According to Renew Europe MEP Dainius Žalimas, the EU should react to violations of the rights of the LGBTQ+ community by launching timely infringement procedures, ensuring full enforcement of court judgements and restricting EU funding to Member States that significantly break the Charter of Fundamental Rights.
During the debate, Commissioner Helena Dalli pointed out that overall, hate-motivated harassment targeting LGBTQ+ people has increased by 18% in Europe since 2019, citing a 2024 survey of the EU Agency for Fundamental rights. Several MEPs referred to the importance education plays in fighting this hatred by teaching tolerance and by making LGBTQ+ people feel less alone. German MEP Moritz Körner from the Renew Europe group criticized the right-wing narrative that claims education on LGBTQ+ topics in school would turn children gay. In reality, this education might just make children a bit more tolerant, says Körner.
Overall, it can be said that while the increased hatred and discrimination towards the LGBTQ+ community in Europe is posing a threat, the majority of the members in the European Parliament is still fighting for the protection of rights and freedoms of the queer community.