Hungary Moves To Ban Budapest Pride, Expands Crackdown On LGBTQ+ Rights

 

Hungary’s ruling coalition took another step in its ongoing crackdown on LGBTQ+ rights Monday, proposing a bill that would ban the annual Budapest Pride event and grant authorities the power to use facial recognition technology to identify attendees.

With the ruling coalition holding a two-thirds majority in parliament, the bill is expected to pass. If enacted, it would criminalize events that violate Hungary’s controversial “child protection” law, which prohibits the “depiction or promotion” of homosexuality to minors under 18. Attendees of such events could face fines of up to 200,000 Hungarian forints ($546), with proceeds directed toward so-called child protection efforts.

A Pattern of Repression

This proposal is the latest in a series of restrictive measures targeting LGBTQ+ people under Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s government. Framing itself as a defender of traditional family values and Christian identity, the administration has repeatedly enacted policies limiting LGBTQ+ visibility and rights, often under the guise of protecting children from “sexual propaganda.”

Hungary’s 2021 “child protection” law bans the portrayal of homosexuality in content accessible to minors, including television, advertisements, literature, and school curriculums. It also forbids the public depiction of gender identities that differ from one’s sex at birth.

Targeting Budapest Pride

Budapest Pride, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, has been a key event advocating for LGBTQ+ rights in Hungary. In a February speech, Orbán signaled his intent to take further action against the march, which draws thousands of participants each year.

Organizers have condemned the proposed ban as a violation of fundamental rights to free speech and assembly, warning that it marks a dangerous escalation in government efforts to suppress LGBTQ+ expression.