In a significant victory for LGBTQ rights, the European Court of Human Rights has ruled that Lithuania’s anti-LGBTQ propaganda law violates the European Convention on Human Rights. The law, which bans the distribution of information to minors that “expresses contempt for family values,” has been met with criticism from LGBTQ advocates and allies, including the openly gay U.S. Ambassador to Lithuania, Bob Gilchrist.
The case was brought to the court by author Neringa Dangvydė Macatė, who filed a lawsuit against the law after her children’s book, which featured two same-sex couples, was censured by Lithuanian authorities. The ruling is a clear indication that discrimination and censorship against the LGBTQ community will not be tolerated by the European court.
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The law has also been met with opposition from within Lithuania, with openly gay Lithuanian MP, Tomas Vytautas Raskevičius, who is running for mayor of Vilnius, the country’s capital, stating that the ruling will bolster efforts to repeal the propaganda law.
It is a sad reality that LGBTQ individuals still face discrimination and censorship in many parts of the world. The ruling by the European Court of Human Rights is a step in the right direction towards ensuring that LGBTQ individuals are treated with the respect and dignity that every human being deserves. It is our hope that other nations will follow suit and repeal similar discriminatory laws.
