3) Homophobia and discrimination in ILGA’S target

To conclude our reportage on the rights and protection of homosexual people in Europe, we have interviewed Renato Sabbadini, first openly gay city councillor in Bergamo (Italy, 1995-2004) and since 2008 secretary general of ILGA- International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association.

How does the Old Continent rank, compared to the rest of the world, on the protection of gay rights?

It depends on the criterion that we take into consideration. If we talk about laws that fight against discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation, Europe and the European Union in particular is certainly the most LGBT friendly entity in the world. Because it has the highest number of countries where homosexual people can marry or legally form a union. And then, thanks to the Community legislation, in all the EU countries there are provisions sanctioning discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation at the workplace. If one adds to that the fact that the so-called Horizontal Anti-Discrimination Directive that extends the punishability of homophobic attitudes beyond the world of work is already under discussion, we can say that Europe is definitely the most advanced continent in this field.
Otherwise, if we consider other standards, such as social broadmindedness and, consequently, the degree of acceptance of homosexuality by the population, things are different. Certainly, from this point of view, Europe is definitely in a good position but it is in Northern America, and also in Southern America now, that important progress have been made, especially as far as the debates about the equality claims made by the gay community are concerned. And, in addition, the homophobic stigma is definitely receding compared to the past. Yet, outside these areas, in the rest of the world there is still a lot of work to do.

As far as Europe is concerned, do you think that in the countries where the protection of LGBT rights is still insufficient, or in any case minimal, governments are a long way behind society or vice versa?

To answer this question we should examine one case at a time. In Italy, for instance, I think that the government, and more generally the political class, is a long way behind the Italian society. This emerges from the surveys aimed at discovering what citizens think about civil unions. In this case, around 60% of citizens declare themselves for civil unions, including the Catholics interviewed. It is evident that the Establishment does not reflect anymore the cultural progress which has occurred in the Italian society. Probably because it is fearful of another state actor, that is the Vatican.
If we consider the new EU Member States, just to make things clear those countries that joined after 2004, the situation changes further. In some of them, the elites in power are aware that certain homophobic views of some political parties are indefensible towards the European Union, besides being indefensible tout court. In other Eastern Europe countries, where there is not an “enlightened” elite, the degree of acceptance of a homosexual orientation is starting to grow, though timidly. As in the rest of the world, the social broadmindedness towards the establishment of non-traditional gender and sexual orientation identities often is higher in the cities than in rural areas.
I became aware of this situation at the Warsaw gay pride in 2005, when I had the opportunity to read the results of a survey from which it emerged that more than one in two inhabitants of Warsaw declared themselves for the parade while, at national level, figures were much lower. Fortunately, the urbanization rate in Europe is very high and ever-increasing.

How can the European Union tolerate such inequalities in this field within its territory?

The problem is that we are witnessing the traditional diatribe on national sovereignty between the Community institutions and the Member States. These last claim their independence of intervention on this issue, and more generally as far as family law is concerned. The real hypocrisy is that even though the Community institutions, especially the Commission and the Parliament, have been working hard to wear this sovereignty away for 10 years, everybody (I mean the institutions and the Member States) pretend that this has not happened. As for family law, there are several directives which, somehow, erode national independence and impose specific rules to which each member state is required to conform. One day the European institutions and national governments will have to reach an agreement so they will not be able to pretend to ignore each other anymore.

In your opinion, would there be the possibility of a strengthened cooperation that would allow a mutual recognition of the rights of homosexual people, as it happened for cross-border marriages?

There would be. Also because the principles of free movement and European citizenships are already threatened.  There are cases of homosexual couples, even mixed (Editor’s note: where partners have two different nationalities) who after being married in the Netherlands, for instance, move to Italy and legitimately ask to be recognized a s a couple. These cases are more and more frequent. And this is good because within a few years, it will be the judiciary of each Member State that will pose this problem to its own lawmakers. And conversely to the European institutions as well.

As it has already happened with the Directive against discrimination in the workplace, could it be Europe itself which will set out its conditions for a further progress, that is an actual equality among couples of different sexual orientation in all countries of the Old Continent?

The point is that when the Directive 2004/38 on free movement was adopted by both the Council and the Commission, they already knew that it would cause many incongruities. But at the same time they knew that they were beginning an unstoppable process. From this point of view, I think that it is really sad for those countries, such as Italy and Poland, which have not yet recognized the equality between heterosexual and homosexual couples, that one day they could recognize it only because they are forced to comply with the European legislation and not thanks to an independent legislative urge. This last would show a greater maturity and more civility of the country which does it. But, if this is the only one way, then so be it!

How can homophobia be fought?

This is a very tricky and more complex problem. We cannot deny that even in the most advanced societies there are traditional homophobic components. The point is that, an increase of this phenomenon has been registered over the last few years, along with physical assaults, also in those countries that have made headway at the legislative level. It could seem a paradox but it is not like that actually. Because this is the response of a part of the society which is long way behind the increase of visibility of homosexual or transsexual people which has taken place thanks to a greater openness and important legal recognitions. The phenomenon will surely decrease proportionally with the social acceptance of homosexuality but we cannot fool ourselves that it can totally disappear. There will always be somebody who will feel threatened in his own identity, certainties and values by the recognition of equal rights for everybody, independently of the sexual orientation or gender identity.

In the countries where the right to adopt is recognized to homosexual couples as well, a large part of the population does not agree. How do you explain that?

Because it is the final taboo and it shakes the concept of family to its foundations, threatening the traditional order of things where roles are fixed, not interchangeable. But many studies have already shown that it is not necessary to have a man and woman to raise a child. What about all those people who have brought up their children on their own? Not mentioning the fact that homoparental families have existed for  twenty years in several countries.

(Translation: Francesca Cannino)