The LGBTI+ Community Contribute to Society Just Like Everybody Else! – Awareness Raising Campaign Launched in Albania
Pride is more than just a month of the year, it is a social movement and the messages of equality have to be repeated throughout the entire year. In society, there is still a lot of prejudice and misconceptions regarding gender identity, sexual orientation and expression. Due to these misconceptions the LGBTI+ community faces discrimination and social exclusion on a daily basis. Hate crime, hate speech and hate propaganda against members of the LGBTI+ community continue to occur after pride month has ended. This week an animation video with a message of respect and a loud call to keep combating all forms of discrimination and societal exclusion, hate crime, hate speech and hate propaganda towards the LGBTI+ community was launched in Albania.
Watch the video here:
The video is the start of a larger awareness-raising campaign focused on encouraging people to continue promoting equality, diversity, inclusion and human rights. LGBTI+ rights are human rights.
The Coronavirus pandemic has exposed society to new types of stress, insecurity, uncertainty and an increase of isolation. People around the world are wearing masks and changing their lifestyles to adapt to current situations. These hardships and the isolation we have all been experiencing is something the LGBTI+ community has had to endure, even before the pandemic, and will continue to face after everyone else has taken off their masks.
After the first virtual pride #PrideON in Europe was organized in Tirana, Albania a month of awareness-raising campaigns was launched. Under the motto “Exist, Persist, Resist” the awareness-raising campaign sends the message that the LGTBI community has and will continue to exist, persist and resist in Albania while being a contributing member of society. The video is part of the awareness-raising campaign.
The LGTBI community has and will continue to exist, persist and resist in Albania while being a contributing member of society.”
Portraying the diversity within the LGBTI+ community and demonstrating their various roles, functions and jobs in society, the video calls for respect and ending discrimination. It was also created as a part of the NHC project ‘Countering discrimination and protecting LGBTI rights in Albania,’ implemented in partnership with Albanian LGBTI+ NGOs Aleanca LGBTI, Pro LGBT the Streha LGBT Centre, COC Netherlands, the Dutch National Police, and the Albanian police.
The ‘Countering discrimination and protecting LGBTI rights in Albania’ project aims to increase responses from justice chain partners in Albania towards hate crime incidents against the LGTBI+ community with a focus on promoting human rights of the LGBTI+ community. This project is funded by the Matra Programme of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs aimed at strengthening democracy, rule of law and stability in Eastern European countries and potential EU candidate countries.
