World
Violent mob forces cancellation of Tbilisi Pride in Georgia
March organizers’ offices ransacked, journalists attacked
A violent mob forced the cancellation of a Pride march that was to have taken place in Georgia’s capital on Monday.
Videos show what one source described to the Washington Blade as a “marginal mob of Christian and far-right extremists” ripping down a Pride flag that Tbilisi Pride had hung from the balcony of its offices. Tbilisi Pride Director Giorgi Tabagari later posted to social media a video that showed the mob ransacked them.
❗️This is how our office looks like after todays attack. @GovernmentGeo and @MIAofGeorgia failed to protect people and didn’t stop aggressive groups to destroy our property..#TbilisiPride21 #Georgia #Pride pic.twitter.com/mLADg7BMgP
— Giorgi Tabagari (@Tabagari) July 5, 2021
Media reports indicate the mob attacked journalists and stabbed at least one person.
“They declared war against civil society, democratic values and the European course of the country,” said Tbilisi Pride in a statement it released after it officially cancelled the march.
Tbilisi Pride and other Georgian LGBTQ activists accused the former Soviet republic’s government of not doing enough to protect march participants. Tbilisi Pride in its statement also sharply criticized Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili, Patriarch Ilia of the Georgian Orthodox Church and “pro-Russian groups” for comments they made before and after the march’s cancellation.
“The (Georgia) Ministry of Internal Affairs, despite having all opportunities to ensure the safety of Pride Week participants, did not take any action to protect the fundamental rights of people,” said Tbilisi Pride. “Tbilisi Pride members, representatives of international organizations and (members of the) diplomatic corps had a number of meetings with MIA representatives. They knew our action strategy. They were offered specific plans … but instead of measures, we have been watching from the morning government representatives encouraging violent groups.”
The American, Austrian, Bulgarian, British, Bulgarian, Czech, Dutch, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Irish, Israeli, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Slovenian, Spanish and Swedish embassies in a joint statement condemned the violence. The U.N. and European Union missions in the country were also signatories.
“We condemn today’s violent attacks on the civic activists, community members and journalists, as well as the failure of the government leaders and religious officials to condemn this violence,” reads the statement. “Participation in peaceful gatherings is a human right guaranteed by Georgia’s Constitution. Violence is simply unacceptable and cannot be excused. Those who incite or threaten violence or commit violent acts are interfering with the efforts of Georgia’s law enforcement professionals to uphold a safe and secure environment. They should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”
“We call on all Georgia’s leaders and law enforcement to act swiftly to protect those exercising their Constitutional rights to freedom of expression and assembly, to protect journalists exercising freedom of the press, and to publicly condemn violence,” it adds.
ILGA-Europe is among the LGBTQ rights groups that have also condemned the violence. Civil.ge, a Georgian news website, reported that authorities have launched an investigation.
NOM president traveled to Tbilisi in June
The first Tbilisi Pride march was to have taken place in June 2019, but organizers postponed it amid protests against a Russian MP who spoke at the Georgian Parliament. A small Pride demonstration took place a few weeks later.
U.S. Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan in May faced criticism after she met with Georgian Orthodox Church Archbishop Iakob.
Civil.ge Editor-in-Chief Otar “Otto” Kobakhidze in a series of tweets noted Iakob “led a program against LGBTQ activists in downtown Tbilisi” on the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia in 2013.
US Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan comes under mounting criticism from liberal/leftist Georgians for her Friday visit to Bodbe Monastery, where she met Archbishop Iakob, the man who led a pogrom against LGBTQ activists in downtown Tbilisi on #IDAHOT 2013.
1/3 pic.twitter.com/4UPslLM0nB
— Otar (Otto) Kobakhidze (@Otto_Kobakhidze) May 16, 2021
National Organization for Marriage President Brian Brown traveled to Georgia last week. Brown on June 23 participated in a Tbilisi press conference with Levan Vesadze, an anti-LGBTQ Georgian businessman who recently founded an ultranationalist political party.
“In country after country we find men and women, men like Levan, who act and stand for truth, for the family,” said Brown. “No lies, no slurs will stop us.”
Germany
German group slams White House’s LGBTQ rights record ahead of World Cup
LSVD says trans, nonbinary soccer fans safety ‘not guaranteed’ in US
A German advocacy group on the eve of the 2026 World Cup sharply criticized the Trump-Vance administration over its anti-LGBTQ policies.
The World Cup will take place in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico through July 19. The tournament began on Thursday in Mexico City with Mexico beating South Africa 2-0.
“In the USA, democracy is being gradually dismantled,” said Julia Monro of Federation Queer Diversity, a German LGBTQ and intersex rights group known by the acronym LSVD, in a statement released on Wednesday. “In particular, the human rights of trans, intersex, and nonbinary individuals, as well as other queer people, are facing massive attacks and political instrumentalization by the Trump administration.”
The LSVD statement notes sports “has a special responsibility in this situation because it conveys values worldwide that extend beyond the playing field: fairness, respect, and inclusion.”
“This must apply to everyone, including trans* and nonbinary people,” says LSVD. “Those who love sport must also protect those who can only experience it under difficult circumstances.”
“The public visibility of queer people is being pushed back, companies and organizations with diversity strategies are being pressured, and laws for trans*, intersex, and nonbinary people are being tightened,” added the group. “This is not a fringe issue, but directly affects everyday life, mobility, and safety. The way minority rights are treated is a measure of the state of a democratic society. Inhumane measures must not be normalized. The international community must not remain silent as attention on the host country, the USA, increases. The Trump administration could exploit this media platform for further inhumane purposes, in order to transfer its homophobic agenda to other countries.”
LSVD also stressed the “safety of trans* and nonbinary soccer fans is currently not guaranteed in the USA.”
“We advise all queer fans to inform themselves carefully beforehand and to take precautions for their safety,” it said.
The Council for Global Equality is one of the more than 100 organizations that issued a travel advisory for the U.S. ahead of the World Cup.
LSVD in its statement pointed out the German government in 2025 issued a travel advisory for trans and nonbinary people who are planning to visit the U.S. The warning specifically noted President Donald Trump’s executive order that banned the State Department from issuing passports with “X” gender markers.
InterPride, the organization that coordinates WorldPride events, issued a travel advisory for trans and nonbinary people who planned to travel to the U.S. for WorldPride that took place last summer in D.C.
“Due to an executive order issued by the U.S. president on Jan. 20, all travelers must select either ‘male’ or ‘female’ when applying for entry or visas. The gender listed at birth will be considered valid,” read the InterPride advisory. “If your passport has ‘X’ 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.”
LSVD notes the German government reiterated its 2025 travel advisory ahead of the World Cup.
“Anyone traveling with a different gender entry, with an ‘X’ marker in their passport, or who does not conform to the state’s expectations during checks, must expect problems in the USA,” said LSVD.
Hungary
Charges against Budapest mayor for organizing Pride march dropped
Country’s new government took office last month
Hungarian authorities on Thursday dropped charges against Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony over his role in organizing the city’s 2025 Pride march.
Karácsony spoke at the event, even though then-Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s government banned it.
More than 100,000 people defied the ban and participated in the march that took place on June 28, 2025. The Associated Press notes the Budapest Chief Prosecutor’s Office in January charged Karácsony with “organizing the unlawful assembly despite a prohibition order.”
Karácsony, who has been Budapest’s mayor since 2019, described himself as a “proud defendant” after his indictment.
“It seems that in this country, this is the price you pay if you stand up for your own freedom and the freedom of others,” he said in a statement, according to the AP. “If anyone thinks they can ban me, deter me, or prevent me and my city from doing so, they are gravely mistaken.”
Budapest is Hungary’s capital and largest city.
Prime Minister Péter Magyar took office last month after his center-right Tisza party ousted Orbán’s Fidesz-KDNP coalition in elections that took place on April 12.
Hungarian police on May 29 announced they will allow the Budapest Pride march to take place this year.
The European Union’s top court, the EU Court of Justice, days after Orbán’s ouster struck down Hungary’s anti-LGBTQ propaganda law that MPs approved in 2021. The BBC notes Hungarian authorities cited the decision in their decision to drop the charges against Karácsony.
Authorities in Pécs, a city near Hungary’s border with Croatia, have also dropped charges against Géza Buzás-Hábel, who organized a 2025 Pride event.
Hungary
Hungarian authorities lift Budapest Pride ban
Country’s new government took office last month
Hungarian police on May 29 announced they will allow the annual Budapest Pride march to take place.
“The Budapest Metropolitan Police has approved the 2026 Budapest Pride Parade and also has issued restrictive orders in relation to three counter-demonstrations,” a Budapest Metropolitan Police spokesperson told Politico.
Budapest is Hungary’s capital and largest city.
Hungarian lawmakers last year passed a bill that banned Pride events and allowed authorities to use facial recognition technology to identify participants. MPs later amended the Hungarian constitution to ban public LGBTQ events.
More than 100,000 people defied the ban and participated in last year’s Budapest Pride parade. The event became one of the largest protests against then-Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and his government since he took office in 2010.
Prime Minister Péter Magyar took office last month after his center-right Tisza party ousted Orbán’s Fidesz-KDNP coalition in elections that took place on April 12. The European Union’s top court, the EU Court of Justice, days after Orbán’s ouster struck down Hungary’s anti-LGBTQ propaganda law that MPs approved in 2021.
The EU on May 29 announced it will release more than €16 billion ($18.59 billion) in funds to Hungary that it withheld while Orbán was in office.
The Budapest Pride march will take place on June 27.
“We will march freely in fresh air for our rights, for the democratic Hungary,” said Budapest Pride on its Facebook page.
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