Belgrade LGBT Pride 2010

The belgrade pride was able to take place last weekend after years of non-support by officials and lots of violent harrasments from homophob groups, fundamentalist christians and nationalists. This time police was massively present and had clashes with thousands of anti-pride “extremists”, as they were named in mainstream media.

The pride in belgrade was cancelled more than one time after officials and police were not willing to take care for security of the event. In Zagreb, the pride takes place for years allready and it was made possible with support of the ones in power.

This is complicated logic for anarchists, who are for a free society, which means from my point of view to be especially against homophobia and other forms of discrimination. Of course being against the state and against power of police is a contradiction to supporting an event made possible with support of these. But where are alternatives for making such events possible? The own strength is not enough as it was seen in Belgrade in 2001, when police just watched the agressors beating up pride participants brutally. Waiting for better times to come without acting is not an alternative for discriminated people. The whole human rights issue is quite complicated in terms of demanding something from politics you are fighting against in the same time, but peoples dignity and anti-torture activity is as well as anti-discrimination work necessary and to support. The contradictions are more or less, the sucess is not only but also based on the outcome of the kind of actions. It seems rather luxury for me to be able to choose the ways of action as it is possible in north-west metropoles, but the smaller and more isolated the anarchists and antiautoritharian groups and people are, the question about compromizing and acting in contradictions is more visible. On the other hand in metropoles, the “activist-ghettos” are also often limiting the influence of anarchist ideas in society.

The main thing is from my opinion, to name the contradictions and to handle the situation tactically but not to make the mistake to believe in this kind of politics generalized, like creating green parties or something like these things that had been experienced in western countries years ago in similair struggles. Also i do not see the point to invite officials from government like they did in belgrade, to show up for getting plus-points in the west. this is probably for “normalization” of the topic, but is just very deeply in lobby-politics with the people who are directly part of the problem.

There are better times to fight for, where it will be possible to go beyond legal-nonlegal categories and to be able to act for freedom of sexual orientation and against the homophobe mainstream based on our own strenght.

In solidarity with the anti-homophobe activities in balkans and elsewhere,

a3yo

Here are some background information about the event in details, as i did not had the chance to participate and do not know much about what exactly happened:

The official website of the pride: http://www.parada.rs

Video: First Belgrade pride march since 2001 marred by violence (by pinknews.co.uk)

158 injured, 249 arrested in Belgrade riots (by B 92, Mainstream Media from Belgrade)

Belgrade Pride 2010 – a call for tolerance, against discrimination (by amnesty international)

Serbia police clash with far-right rioters at gay pride march (by the guardian)

Here are some videos of the event:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yl0ExLePrKg&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJVpqBHgCWU&feature=player_embedded