In Belgrade today (September 5) the "Pride March" is being held as part of Belgrade Pride, which is held under the slogan "There is room for all of us". It is the same slogan under which the first Pride in Serbia was held 25 years ago, because, the organizers explained, since then the demands of the LGBT community have not been met: the law on same-sex unions and the law on gender identity have not been passed.
We are in the same place.
The first Pride is also known as the "Bloody Pride", when hundreds of hooligans demolished the city center and beat the few participants, and the police were insufficiently numerous and unable to protect them.
From the Manjež park, where the participants gathered and where the program began with speeches, the gathered started a protest walk along Nemanja street, then Knez Miloš, Kralja Milan streets, Nikola Pašić square to the National Assembly, and back along Kneza Miloša and Nemanjina streets to Manjež park, where the program will continue with a party.
Photo: N1The famous flag
The walk started after Olivera Kovačević, last year's godmother of pride, handed over the ribbon to this year's, Danica Vučinić.
"We have been more or less in the same place since June 30, 2001. Pride is taking place in a period of glorification of violence, in a time of serious threats to human rights, on the anniversary of police brutality on the campus of the University of Novi Sad, in an atmosphere of multiplied attacks on the LGBT population, without fulfilling any of the eight demands of the community," said Vučenić.
Photo: N1Danica Vučenić
As she added, the violence that was once directed towards the LGBT community has now, as she assesses, spread to other citizens as well.
"Bloody Pride multiplied today and became a constant in our lives," said Danica Vučenić, as reported by N1.
Blocked streets
Central Belgrade streets are blocked for traffic and pedestrians, and the part through which the procession passes is surrounded by a metal fence. The police were present in large numbers.
Photo: Filip Krainčanić/Nova.rsIt was cheerful, colorful and beautiful
Earlier in Manjež, actress Mirjana Karanović, who was previously the godmother of Pride, said that no one can take away their right to joy and a life of their own accord.
"I want to tell you - life is magnificent and it is ours. There is no one and nothing that will prevent us from enjoying life and living it the way we want," said Karanović.
There were many speakers. One of them, dear performer Alexis Plastik, pointed out that "there are many ugly things in this society, today we gathered to fight to make it more beautiful, better, more colorful, to be a society of more equal people. We will never give up the idea that we should all be equal and that we want to live in a society where people are important, not money and power".
Photo: N1Drag performer Alexis Plastik
The speeches of the Belgrade Pride participants continued in front of the Serbian Government building, and then in front of the Assembly.
"The political will to recognize the status of human beings for LGBT people does not exist. Why? Because human beings have the right to love, to build a life together, to have documents without someone peeking into their underwear. Our community largely does not have that," Insider journalist Milan Nikolić said.
"But what do we have? We have each other, we have a handful of allies that is expanding and getting bigger with the years. And that is why today we proudly say that we will not leave and that we will never agree to a captive existence in four walls. We are who we are and nothing makes you more valuable than us," said Nikolić.
Incident
There was one incident, a group of men led by a priest tried to approach the procession near the Assembly, but the police quickly prevented them from doing so.
Photo: FoNetThey are bothered by others.
Also, while the procession was passing by the Church of the Ascension, a group of citizens shouted derogatory messages from behind the church fence, the name of Ratko Mladić, they carried icons and lamps, and the police made sure that there was no contact between them and the participants of the Pride.
Because of the metal fences and the police, there were no other passers-by in the part of the city through which the procession passed.
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