Europe
Turkish police arrest hundreds over banned Pride parade
Istanbul officials sought to prevent event from happening

Hundreds of LGBTQ people, allies and supporters took to the streets of Istanbul Sunday in defiance of the country’s government’s ongoing 2014 ban of Pride parades and Pride Month festivities.
Protestors violently clashed repeatedly with police and security forces in various neighborhoods located around the Bol Ahenk Sokak (Pedestrian Plaza) and other sections of the central downtown area.
Authorities had shut down the city’s transit systems hours prior to the influx of LGBTQ activists and demonstrators and flooded streets with police in riot gear who made hundreds of arrests, in some cases tear gassing participants and attacking them with clubs.
Government security forces arrested over 373 people including Agence France-Presse journalist and chief photographer Bülent Kılıç. Detainees were taken by bus to a central holding facility for processing. Photojournalist Mehmet Demirci documented the arrest of Kılıç in a Twitter post.
My photojournalist friend Bülent Kılıç has been taken into police custody while covering the #İstanbulPride. His hands were cuffed behind his back.@Kilicbil Kilicbil pic.twitter.com/sDYNoVe13L #journalismnotcrime
ā mehmet demirci (@mehmet_demirci_) June 26, 2022
Ankara-based Kaos GL, the largest Turkish LGBTQ activist group, documented the arrests and clashes which occurred prior to the 5 p.m. planned parade kick-off in a series of Twitter posts.
İzmir’de polis zor kullanarak LGBTİ+’ları alandan Ƨıkarmaya ƧalıÅıyor!#OnurYürüyüÅü #Pride2022 pic.twitter.com/jlJ7H2eOWU
ā Kaos GL (@KaosGL) June 26, 2022
KAOS GL in a press release on Monday noted that “the detentions experienced during the march, was among ‘firsts’ for this year. Totally 373 LGBTIs and LGBTI+ right defenders were taken into custody on the day of march! This number is a record both in the history of Pride marches and the other public demonstrations.”
The group also recorded the scope of anti-LGBTQ Pride Month bans and pressure by Turkey’s governmental bodies across the country.
“There were 10 ban decisions announced within the scope of Pride Month events. These ban decisions were taken by BoÄaziƧi University Rectorate, METU Rectorate, Gaziantep Governorship, Ćanakkale Governorship, DatƧa District Governorship, BeyoÄlu District Governorship, Kadıkƶy District Governorship, EskiÅehir Governorship and İzmir Governorship.
The detentions began with 70 people at ninth BoÄaziƧi Pride March on May 20, increasingly went on till June 26. 373 people were taken into custody in Istanbul on June 26. This number is among the highest detentions within the context of the public demonstrations in İstanbul recent years. Totally 530 LGBTI+s and LGBTI+ right defenders were detained in 37 days.”
Hungary
Hungarian MPs amend constitution to ban public LGBTQ events
Viktor OrbĆ”n’s government spearheaded amendment

Hungarian MPs on Monday voted to amend their country’s constitution to ban public LGBTQ events.
The vote took place less than a month after lawmakers banned Pride events and gave authorities the green light to use facial recognition technology to identify those who participate in them.
The Associated Press notes MPs approved the constitutional amendment ā which Prime Minister Viktor OrbĆ”n’s Fidesz-KDNP coalition government proposed ā by a 140-21 vote margin. Authorities before the vote removed a group of protesters who tried to block the entrance to a parliament parking garage.
OrbĆ”n’s government over the last decade has moved to curtail LGBTQ and intersex rights in Hungary.
A law that bans legal recognition of transgender and intersex people took effect in 2020. Hungarian MPs that year also effectively banned same-sex couples from adopting children and defined marriage in the constitution as between a man and a woman.
An anti-LGBTQ propaganda law took effect in 2021. The European Commission sued Hungary, which is a member of the European Union, over it.
MPs in 2023 approved the āsnitch on your gay neighborā bill that would have allowed Hungarians to anonymously report same-sex couples who are raising children. The Budapest Metropolitan Government Office in 2023 fined Lira Konyv, the countryās second-largest bookstore chain, 12 million forints ($33,115.76), for selling copies of British author Alice Osemanās āHeartstopper.ā
Former U.S. Ambassador to Hungary David Pressman, who is gay, participated in the Budapest Pride march in 2024 and 2023. Pressman was also a vocal critic of Hungaryās anti-LGBTQ crackdown.
The Washington Blade has reached out to Budapest Pride for comment on the constitutional amendment.
Denmark
Denmark issues US travel advisory for transgender people
Federal government only recognizes two genders: Male and female

Denmark is the latest country to issue a travel advisory for transgender people who plan to visit the U.S.
āWhen applying for an ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization) or visa to the United States, there are two gender designations to choose from: Male or female,ā reads the travel advisory the Danish Foreign Affairs Ministry issued on Friday, according to the Associated Press. āIf you have the gender designation ‘X’ in your passport, or you have changed your gender, it is recommended that you contact the U.S. Embassy prior to travel for guidance on how to proceed.ā
President Donald Trump shortly after he took office on Jan. 20 issued an executive order that bans the State Department from issuing passports with āXā gender markers. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in response to directive ordered State Department personnel to āsuspend any application requesting an āXā sex marker and do not take any further action pending additional guidance from the department.ā
Trump on Feb. 5 issued another executive order that bans trans women and girls from female sports teams. The Guardian reported Rubio later instructed American consular officials to deny visas in ācases where applicants are suspected of misrepresenting their purpose of travel or sex.”
The German government earlier this month issued a travel advisory for trans and nonbinary people who are planning to visit the U.S. The AP notes Finland followed suit.
WorldPride is scheduled to take place in D.C. from May 17-June 8.
InterPride, the organization that coordinates WorldPride events, on March 12 issued its own travel advisory for trans and nonbinary people who want to travel to the U.S.
āDue to an executive order issued by the U.S. president on Jan. 20, all travelers must select either āmaleā or āfemaleā when applying for entry or visas. The gender listed at birth will be considered valid,ā reads the advisory. āIf your passport has āXā as a gender marker or differs from your birth-assigned gender, we strongly recommend contacting the U.S. diplomatic mission before traveling to confirm entry requirements.ā
The Capital Pride Alliance is the local WorldPride host. Capital Pride said it is working on the guide mentioned in the InterPride advisory.
The guide has yet to be released.
The African Human Rights Coalition, a group that promotes LGBTQ rights in Africa, last week called for a boycott of WorldPride, noting an “antagonistic fascist regime which presents distinct dangers to foreign LGBTQI+ attendees” now governs the U.S. Egale Canada, one of Canadaās largest LGBTQ advocacy organizations, in February announced its members will not attend WorldPride and any other event in the U.S. because of the Trump-Vance administrationās policies.
Hungary
New Hungarian law bans Pride marches
Viktor OrbĆ”n’s government has cracked down on LGBTQ rights

Hungarian lawmakers on Tuesday passed a bill that would ban Pride events and allow authorities to use facial recognition technology to identify those who participate in them.
The Associated Press reported thousands of protesters gathered outside the Hungarian parliament in Budapest, the country’s capital, after MPs approved the measure by a 136-27 vote margin. The protesters later blocked traffic on the nearby Margaret Bridge over the Danube River.
āNot only does this law introduce discriminatory and simply evil restrictions on freedom of assembly, but it was also adopted in a highly undemocratic manner, through an extraordinary procedure that did not allow for any real debate,ā said TamĆ”s Dombos of the HĆ”ttĆ©r Society, a Hungarian LGBTQ and intersex rights group, in a statement that Outright International released after the vote. āThey proposed it yesterday, and the parliament adopted it today.”
Amnesty International Hungary Director DƔvid Vig also criticized the vote.
āThis law is a full-frontal attack on the LGBTI community and a blatant violation of Hungaryās obligations to prohibit discrimination and guarantee freedom of expression and peaceful assembly,” said Vig.
Prime Minister Viktor OrbƔn and members of his government in recent weeks said they would ban public Pride marches in Budapest. The 30th Budapest Pride is scheduled to take place on June 28.
“The Hungarian government is trying to restrict peaceful protests with a critical voice by targeting a minority,” said Budapest Pride on Tuesday in a statement the Washington Blade published. “Therefore, as a movement, we will fight for the freedom of all Hungarians to protest!”
OrbƔn and members of his ruling Fidesz party over the last decade have moved to curtail LGBTQ and intersex rights in Hungary.
A law that bans legal recognition of transgender and intersex people took effect in 2020. Hungarian MPs that year also effectively banned same-sex couples from adopting children and defined marriage in the constitution as between a man and a woman.
An anti-LGBTQ propaganda law took effect in 2021. The European Commission sued Hungary, which is a member of the European Union, over it.
MPs in 2023 approved the āsnitch on your gay neighborā bill that would have allowed Hungarians to anonymously report same-sex couples who are raising children. The Budapest Metropolitan Government Office in 2023 fined Lira Konyv, the countryās second-largest bookstore chain, 12 million forints ($33,001.94), for selling copies of British author Alice Osemanās āHeartstopper.ā
Former U.S. Ambassador to Hungary David Pressman, who is gay, participated in the Budapest Pride march in 2024 and 2023. Pressman was also a vocal critic of Hungaryās anti-LGBTQ crackdown.
“We will not be intimidated, we will not give in to bullying,” said Dombos. “We are celebrating Pride for the 30th time in Budapest this year.”
“There was Pride before the OrbĆ”n governments, and there will be Pride after,” he added.
Elections will take place in Hungary in 2026.
Budapest Pride spokesperson Johanna Majercsik earlier this month said the Hungarian Helsinki Committee, a Budapest-based human rights NGO, has offered their organization legal advice.
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