How do you comment on the situation regarding the rights of LGBTQIA+ in Ukraine*?

I think the issues of LGBTQIA+ rights are not being addressed at the state level yet because the promotion of these rights only started recently. Our country is very young, and even after the collapse of the USSR, people were hesitant to talk about their sexuality. Only recently has this topic started gaining attention. I understand why progress on this bill is slow as it emerged quite recently. If organizations and activists had been advocating for this bill since the 2000s, the outcome might have been different. Especially now, during the war, it needs more promotion. But it has to be done right — not to make it look like propaganda. Because when people see support for LGBTQIA+ individuals, they immediately start shouting “propaganda, propaganda.”

I’ve only experienced aggression regarding my orientation once. It came from my childhood friend. Other than that, when I came out on Instagram and everyone found out, there was no aggression at all. Maybe someone unfollowed me, I don’t know. But most of the time, when I post something or share stories now, even my straight friends often comment, “cool, cute.” There’s no aggression. I’m quite socially awkward, but somehow I manage to have good relationships with people.

What should other countries know about LGBTQIA+ people in Ukraine?

Europeans should know that people in Ukraine are not well-educated on this topic. They think that LGBTQIA+ individuals are perverts. At the state level, the bill needs time. ⁃ I can address people directly. Understand that LGBTQIA+ individuals are not the people portrayed in anti-LGBTQIA+ propaganda media, where we’re all depicted as perverts, marching in parades, or doing something inappropriate on beaches in front of children. In fact, you can see that in social media, straight couples engage in more immoral behavior. Secondly, our love is just the same as in heterosexual couples. It’s not just some sexual attraction to a person or a desire to sleep with someone. It’s emotional, it’s spiritual love as well. LGBTQIA+ people are absolutely everywhere. A person may simply choose to conceal it throughout their life.

*At the state level, the law on registered partnerships in Ukraine has been under discussion since 2015. However, it was during the war that a plan of action for the implementation of the National Human Rights Strategy for 2021-2023 was agreed upon. As part of this, as of December 2023, the introduction of the institution of registered civil partnership, including for same-sex couples, has been approved.