Have generations of parents stopped reading Andersen’s fairy tales to their children? Have we stopped listening to Tchaikovsky and Beethoven, admiring Leonardo and Michelangelo, reading Shakespeare and Lorca, or listening to Elton John and Sinead O’Connor?
All these remarkable men and women were, or still are, gay.
“Unfortunately, members of sexual minorities in Serbia are exposed to threats, hate speech, discrimination, and violence on a daily basis. It’s a problem that we, as a society, need to face. Each and every citizen should demonstrate the will and responsibility to overcome prejudices and stereotypes, as should the state authorities, educational, health-care, and other institutions which all have a key role in developing a society of tolerance that accepts and respects the diversity”, said the Commissioner in her public statement for the observance of the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia.
The International Day against Homophobia and Transphobia is an annual event celebrated every May 17. It observes the day that homosexuality was removed from the International Classification of Diseases of the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1990.
The day aims to remind us, and warn us, that each individual is entitled to human rights, without distinction based on sexual orientation. That is why fighting against such discrimination is, at the same time, fighting for the right to be different and equal.