The 2017 Dúhový (i.e. Rainbow) PRIDE Bratislava will take place on August 19 (from 13:00) in Hviezdoslavovo Square, and the headliner will be the Slovak band Puding Pani Elvisovej. The seventh year of the event opens the issue of the visibility of LGBTI people in Slovak society.
The call for online donations to the event has been supported by renowned Slovak visual artists.
The main goal of PRIDE is to support the presence and visibility of the gay, lesbian, bisexual, trans-gender and intersex community in its full variety in the entire country. It represents a colourful stride in the streets of the capital’s Old Town, in which the LGBTI people are joined by their families, friends, colleagues and acquaintances to show they are ordinary people – also in Slovakia – who want to have the same chance as everyone else for health, happiness, nice living, of feeling safe and taking care of loved ones. It is important due to Slovak legislation not acknowledging same-sex couples and their families, registered partnerships or marriages – banned by the Constitution since 2014.
Organisers comment on PRIDE 2017
“The experience from the past half a century of the movement for LGBTI rights in America and Europe tells tales,” spokesman of Dúhový PRIDE Martin Macko says in a statement. “The main reason why most people started accepting LGBTI people as an equal part of society is that they learnt about them in person – within their families, workplaces, schools, neighbourhoods, religious communities, sports teams, etc.” He added that it is stunning that after more than 26 years of democracy and civil society, almost two-thirds of Slovaks claim they do not know any gay or lesbian in their environment, Macko stressed.
It is especially important, due to the growing political extremism in Slovakia, for the top state, society, local administration and corporations to symbolically express a policy of connecting – and the stance that LGBTI people are an equal part of state, nation, society and the local community, head of the Dúhový PRIDE Diana Pruchnerovičová said. Instead of differences, common values, dreams and convictions should be stressed, she added.
Visual artists Ivana Šáteková, Juliana Chomová, Michaela Chmelíčková, Andrea Kopecká and Andrej Dúbravský supported the fund-raising for the event with a donation of their artworks.
In eastern Slovakia, PRIDE Košice will take place on September 2, with the leitmotif: “I Am Who I Am”.