“It takes no compromise to give people their rights. It takes no money to respect the individual. It takes no political deal to give people freedom. It takes no survey to remove oppression.” — Harvey Milk
Everyone invokes human rights, except when those rights actually need to be granted to someone else. This “everyone” applies particularly to privileged members of society who enjoy all the rights of a citizen, yet refuse to afford those same rights to others. If your cup is full and you have no room for more, why do you object to someone else pouring half a cup for themselves from the well?
On Saturday, September 17, EuroPride was scheduled to take place in Belgrade—the first of its kind in the Western Balkans. Instead of taking pride in the opportunity to show solidarity and stand for human rights—even in the absence of basic legal frameworks for same-sex unions—Belgrade will instead be a poor host. Truth be told, a sudden influx of other “guests” has arrived on that very day: the Red Bull Formula 1 show, the graduation ceremony of the Military Academy, and, by all accounts, so-called litije (religious processions) demanding the cancellation of the Pride parade.
All of these “guests” (excluding Formula 1) announced themselves at the last minute, just days after Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić announced the cancellation of Pride—a decision the newly reappointed Prime Minister later reframed as merely a “request” not to hold the event due to pressing issues in Kosovo.
The issue in Kosovo is evidently of no concern to Formula 1 enthusiasts, Military Academy graduates, or self-proclaimed patriots advocating for “family values.” Tellingly, the most prominent figures among the latter include convicted criminals, rapists, and perpetrators of violence against women.
Why write this? Because Serbia is a deeply polarized society where diversity is punished and bullying is rewarded; a society where the president equates individuals inciting violence and murder with citizens standing up for their fundamental human and constitutional right to freedom of assembly.
Pride is a protest, no matter how sparkly, colorful, or joyful it appears. Like any other protest, Pride carries specific demands: namely, the adoption of the Law on Same-Sex Unions and the Law on Gender Identity.
Imagine a world in which you cannot visit your loved one in the hospital; a world where you spend your entire life alongside someone, yet cannot inherit their property or pension, nor make medical decisions on their behalf when they are incapacitated. Imagine a world where your child is beaten daily by their partner, and you lack legal mechanisms to combat it. Yes, violence is prohibited by law, but LGBTQ+ individuals remain unprotected from domestic violence frameworks.
Queer people are all around us. They are our friends, our colleagues, and members of our families. Above all, they are human beings, and any assault on their human rights constitutes an assault on us all. We must fight before it is too late.
In closing: love is the law. So be careful whom you hate—it might just be someone you love.