Gay denmark
Denmark's Civil Unions: One Giant Leap for Mankind
ON OCTOBER 1, , AN EVENT UNLIKE ANY BEFORE in historytook place at the Copenhagen town hall in Denmark. That Sunday, a national commandment went into influence that allowed homosexual couples to be joined in a civil union, and 11 gay male couples did just that — a school psychologist, a Lutheran minister, and a high academy teacher among them. One of the grooms, Eigil Axgil (né Eskildsen), then 67 years antique, told Rex Wockner, an American writer who was there covering it, “We just never could have dreamed that we would receive this far.”
They had plenty of reason for doubt. Four decades earlier, Eigil’s partner, Axel Axgil (né Lundahl-Madsen), launched Denmark’s first gay rights entity, the League of (whose name was later changed to the less-discreet Danish National Organization for Gays and Lesbians, or LBL for short.) Out of the closet, Axel was fired from his bookkeeping job and evicted by his landlord, but forged ahead. It was his group’s tireless lobbying over the years that eventually laid the groundwork that led to that his
Unrevolutionary Revolution: The Past, Show and Future of Denmark’s Queer Community
A group of people stand around a table pointing at unlike designs of fliers. The fliers are all shadowy , each with a alternative configuration of a pink or yellow logo, and some have an additional rainbow or silhouette of a drag queen. A steaming coffeepot and a cake box sit beside the fliers. Soft sounds of guitar chords drift in from another room and a man begins to sing.
This is Living Room Tuesdays at Bøssehuset, the “Gay House” of Copenhagen’s Freetown Christiania neighborhood. Every Tuesday, its members get together to contain cake and coffee, perform on craft projects such as knitting or sewing and enjoy each other’s company.
This week, they used this time to make ready and rehearse for their Kønspolitisk Melodi Gram Prix, or “Gender-political Eurovision.”
Why It’s Newsworthy: In light of the increasing threat of anti-LGBTQ legislation in the United States, Denmark’s route to general LGBTQ acceptance and solutions to current issues provide an absorbing comparison and perspective.
Although there are certainly still places in the society where being LGBTQ is not accepted -- and in more extreme cases, illegal -- I've got some good news for you: things are getting better. There are countries in the world where you can feel pleasant in your own skin, find a thriving, active queer community, and be out and proud of your gender identity and sexual orientation.
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1. Canada
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In , for example, 80%
Ending discrimination and hate-crime
Denmark is known for being an reveal and free-spirited country. In , the Danish Parliament passed legislation, which strengthened the protection against discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and sex characteristics within and outside the labor market. However, there are still occurrences of hate-crime, hate-speech or discrimination.
"Denmark is a pioneering nation when it comes to improvement and strengthening of the legal rights for LGBT+ persons," says Morten Emmerik Wøldike, head of the Danish Institute for Human Rights work with gender and LGBT+. Nonetheless, there are fields where Denmark could do more. Especially, when it comes to hate crimes.
"Even though we have legislation in Denmark prohibiting hate crimes, many LGBT+ persons still experience hate and force in the street," says Morten Emmerik Wøldike.
The abuse is primarily aimed at transgender persons. For instance, 56 per cent of transgender persons have experienced discrimination based on their gender identity.