FollowGay Straight Alliance (GSA) and Queeria – center for the promotion of culture of non-violence and equality (Queeria) issued today an invitation to organisations which work on the promotion and protection of human rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) people in Serbia to reach a mutual decision about holding the Pride Parade.
GSA and Queeria have proposed to GLBT organisations and representatives of GLBT community in Serbia to arrange a joint meeting in the next 10 days in order to “analise socio-political context and up-to-date activities of the GLBT movement, which could be significant in deciding whether to organise the Pride Parade, to discuss this in an argumented and constructive way and to reach a mutual decision“.
Bearing in mind all experiences through which the GLBT movement in Serbia went in the last year, as well as the challenges it has faced and still faces today, GSA and Queeria feel that holding the Pride Parade is an important subject which should be decided upon by all GLBT organisations and representatives of GLBT community.
Regardless of the final decision of this meeting, GSA and Queeria see it as necessary that organisations and groups which make up the GLBT movement in Serbia should meet and, with respect for different approaches to the GLBT issue which these organisations represent, improve their mutual intercommunication, overcome certain differences and take a joint stand on the question of Pride Parade.
On the other hand, GSA and Queeria regard the Pride Parade as a means to an end and not as the goal of their activities and the activities of other GLBT organisations, but they also feel that it is very important that this topic be opened in this manner by the relevant representatives of GLBT movement, since there are certain false information that have appeared in the public about holding the Pride Parade and there is a possibility of misusing this event for unclear purposes.
Furthermore, GSA and Queeria believe that this meeting could be one of the most important steps which GLBT movement can take at this moment, especially in light of the coming International Day against Homophobia and the clear need for strengthening the GLBT movement in Serbia as a whole.
The invitation was sent to the following organisations and groups:
- Labris – organisation for lesbian human rights, Belgrade
- Gayten LGBT – Center for the promotion of rights of sexual minorities, Belgrade
- Safe Pulse of Youth (SPY), Belgrade
- Association “Duga“ (“Rainbow“), Šabac
- Gay Lesbian Info Center (GLIC), Belgrade
- Novi Sad Lesbian Organisation (NLO), Novi Sad
- Queer Belgrade, Belgrade
- Taboo – group for the affirmation of differences, Zrenjanin
- LGBT Vojvodina, Novi Sad
- Gay support – a support group for gay men, Novi Sad
