Stronger together as LGBTI activists: What I learned from the ILGA-Europe Conference, Prague 2019

Stronger Together… what did this year’s ILGA-Europe conference theme mean to the 600 LGBTI activist participants who came to Prague in October? And if it is true that we are stronger together, how can we make it happen even more? Our conference reporter and former Executive Director of ILGA-Europe, Patricia Prendiville shares her thoughts, while alongside we share some of the wonderful images documenting this year’s gathering.

Observing, jotting down notes, hearing conversations, participating in workshops, self-organised spaces, listening to plenaries, asking questions, responding to comments and suggestions — as this year’s conference reporter my days were full of a huge complex of thinking, feeling, strategising, planning and learning.

Looking back through my notes I see a number of threads that interweave… like plaits of a rope, making it stronger!

Openings and continuing

My initial thoughts and feelings on experiencing the beginnings of the gathering of the conference were that this was a place of warmest greetings, with people delighted to see each other. I was welcomed, hugged, greeted with energy, care and thoughtfulness. At the same time, I wondered what it was like for people who were here for the first time. I noticed people on their own, watching for openings to connect, responding to opportunities and being okay with themselves. And this was happening all around the venue, with so many different languages, so many new faces and such energy and buzz.

At first it seemed that everyone was young — but on closer observation over the days, I saw many of us ‘older ones’ too. All of us connecting, re-connecting and finding the people we needed to be talking with, engaging in the conversations that would help us move forward. It was the energy that gave the sense of young-ness/youth — the sense that it is possible; it is ahead of us; it is doable.

The inter-generational links seemed to emerge through conversations — people talking about what had been developed because some previous work had been accomplished, people sharing what had worked in their context as a possibility for a newer organisation. So the generational learning included individuals and organisations… people passing on, people keen to build on earlier work. There was both a sense of appreciation of what had been done and of letting new ideas/techniques/approaches be ‘what works’. This seemed very apt to the theme of learning how to be stronger together.

Space for developing

As the days went on, the sense of work being done through the connections was clear — sharing learning, being stimulated, building on the thoughts and ideas from elsewhere. It’s a busy time of work. Throughout the days the conference gave space for people to use different opportunities for development — at the personal, organisational, community and movement levels. There were so many options for people to choose from in terms of organised or self-organised spaces — but in all of them there was a thread of people finding the nugget of insight that made sense.

Challenges for us as change makers, and in the movement

There were many challenges throughout the conference — to us as workers, activists, colleagues and change makers. Challenges to us personally, to how we react, how we respond, how we include, strategise, think and especially how we are when we are challenged. And while it wasn’t always plain sailing being challenged — this gives us the chance and the room to develop.

One of the key challenges seemed to be how to sit with discomfort — our own discomfort of being ‘wrong’, being ‘called out’, being ‘unaware’ or ‘insensitive’ to another’s experience and reality. This along with the feelings of shame, guilt and anxiety that can quickly turn to frustration, anger and then lead us to behaviours that can be dismissive, excluding of others, leading to divisions and polarisation. I saw people struggling with this dynamic a number of times — trying not to follow the usual pattern, trying to listen, to learn, to acknowledge, to remain open so as to move ahead together. I saw people succeeding and people being not as skillful as they wanted to be. And I also saw people re-engaging, trying again — re-committing to inclusion and understanding, and creating a different perspective again. Expanding the definition of us.

The second key challenge people worked with during the conference was exploring how to address the external backlash and push back against the advances made to date. We heard how important it is to ‘carry on’ — to nurture resilience in us as individuals and especially to nurture the resilience of groups and organisations; to support a focus on sustainability and safety and to continue to learn for the different contexts. We need a myriad of strategies because each group/organisation is operating within its particular context and needs to have the resources to work appropriately. It’s important that individuals, groups and organisations have the time to reflect, learn, re-focus and then move forward.

Differences and commonalities

There was much discussion about the numerous groups within the LGBTI movement that have emerged to provide specific spaces to allow us all to safely connect with ‘people like us’, to develop our advocacy and communication and to find our strengths as we organise together. The very real challenge of facilitating these specificities, naming the differences while building a common purpose was expressed on numerous occasions. Internally to the movement, we have to guard against replicating the inequalities in society… the equalities of sexual orientation, gender identify and gender expression and also of the other systemic divisions of society such as race/ethnic origin, class, socio-economic position, disability, religion/belief. Listening to conference participants, it seems this means creating openness in ourselves to other views, other experiences, letting go that my experience is ‘right’ and creating new ‘knowing’ together.

Addressing the challenges

A key guide to advancing this work includes naming without shaming; learning about others’ experience; not expecting others to teach us, each of us taking responsibility for creating the solution together and then moving to together creating a focus on what is our common purpose. Building bridges from our experiences to others’ experience, taking time to learn and then seeking a step forward we all want once we have identified the common ground.

Addressing the challenges externally also means we need to continue using the systems of advocacy, continue making connections with other movements for social change; continue to support the development of the next wave of the movement. While it is important to engage with the agendas of governments, international bodies and other NGO’s, defining our own values, working for our communities, defining our agendas for change is a necessary strand in the rope of us working together to achieve the social change we want.

Having allies from other social change movements, from national and international institutions also helps in continuing to address the challenges. Being reminded that international bodies support the aims of the movement, that we have allies and are allies in other movements contributes to the sense of a bigger ‘us’, and that the challenges are being addressed at the various levels needed for societal change. While we are all gathered together as community organisers/advocates and change activists, we are also part of a bigger progressive arc of people working to make human rights a lived reality.

Values of the movement

Time and again I heard conversations that were grounded in working from beliefs, values and the commitment to working to remain true to these. People acknowledged the challenges to this, in particular when faced with people who do not respect the changes movements are working towards. It is hard to remain clam, to continue to speak from a place of inclusion when someone is saying we are wrong/evil/a scourge/have no right to be in the country… all things said to us in the movement.

And yet the conference gives us an opportunity to re-charge the batteries, to re-gain our focus and to be reminded that our values and beliefs can succeed. The opportunity to gather together provides such a welcome boost to the motivation and determination — this is a hidden benefit of the conference, in addition to the ideas, connections and planning.

Complexity of issues… complex problems, complex solutions

Throughout the conference the realisation that we are working with complexity of issues, problems and the need for a range of solutions was a key factor in people hearing each other as we tried to move forward. Recognising that wanting to be included requires us to be inclusive, so that we can then provide possible solutions from our own lived experience and lived expertise.

The conference was an opportunity to look again at how we can become stronger together within the LGBTI movement, and how we can reach out and work with other human rights based movements so that we grow stronger together, together!

See also

Blog

The ILGA-Europe Annual Conference 2024 in Pictures

For four days in Bucharest, our photographer was there to capture every memorable moment of this year’s Annual Conference. Here are the highlights! This October, […]
read more
Press Release

The ILGA-Europe conference, the largest LGBTI conference in Europe and Central Asia, meets in Bucharest this weekend

The ILGA-Europe Annual Conference, the largest LGBTI conference of its kind in Europe, has brought over 400 LGBTI activists from across Europe and Central Asia […]
read more
Blog

ACCEPT – Strength in solidarity and a call for change

The Romanian LGBTI organisation, ACCEPT plays an important role in co-hosting the ILGA-Europe conference this year. Co-president Teo Ion-Rotaru shares her insights into what the […]
read more
Blog

Meet our Annual Conference hosts: MozaiQ – The courage to grow the movement in Romania

As the ILGA-Europe annual conference approaches, we turn our focus to one of the local co-hosts, MozaiQ, an organisation that has played a crucial role […]
read more
Blog

Annual Conference logo launch: The Power of Curaj

Learn about the courage captured in our branding for this year’s ILGA-Europe conference As we launch our new logo for the ILGA-Europe conference in Bucharest, […]
read more
Blog

The ILGA-Europe Annual Conference 2023 in Pictures

In October we gathered together with 450 activists from across Central in the Slovenian capital of Ljubljana for the ILGA-Europe for the ILGA-Europe Annual Conference. […]
read more
Blog

Creating our Annual Conference logo

As we get ready for our Annual Conference in October, we’re excited to share the collaborative design process for our Ljubljana 2023 visual identity.
read more
Blog

What we can learn from LGBTI activists against all odds

In countries where governments are pushing back on LGBTI people's rights, joining Pride events is a courageous act that carries higher risks. However, it is in their invisible, everyday work where LGBTI activists showcase their most profound courage. The LGBTI movement in Turkey, as well as in Armenia and Azerbaijan, serve as remarkable examples of resilience against all odds.
read more
Blog

Our Annual Conference 2022: Photo Essay

Our Annual Conference was hosted in Sofia by the Bulgarian LGBTI organisations, Bilitis Foundation, Deystvie and Glas Foundation. We would like to thank them for […]
read more
Blog

#IESofia2022: Daily Report, Saturday October 22

As our Annual Conference sadly wound to an end, over 300 participants enjoyed one last day of workshops and celebrated the election of the new ILGA-Europe board, before the Gala Dinner and one last dance together. Here’s a round-up of the final day!
read more
Blog

#IESofia2022: Daily Report, Friday October 21

We began the day imagining the future of collective resilience, as part of the work of ‘shaping the world to come’, which is the theme […]
read more
Blog

#IESofia2022: Daily Report, Thursday Oct 20

Our Annual Conference has well and truly kicked off in Sofia where hundreds of dedicated LGBTI activists from all over Europe and Central Asia are […]
read more
News

Annual Conference 2023: Location Announcement

As we get ready to travel to Bulgaria for the ILGA-Europe annual conference in Sofia next week, we’re delighted to announce that the city for next year’s conference has been chosen.
read more
Blog

Meet Simeon from the Bulgarian organisation, GLAS Foundation, co-host of our Annual Conference

Simeon Vasilev, Chairman and Co-Founder of GLAS Foundation, one of the three Bulgarian LGBTI organisations co-hosting the ILGA-Europe Annual Conference in Sofia this month. Here Simeon talks about the recent elections in Bulgaria and what the possible outcome will mean for LGBTI people in the country. 
read more
Blog

Meet Denitsa from the Bulgarian organisation Deystvie, co-host of our Annual Conference

Denitsa Lyubenova is co-founder of Deystvie, one of the three Bulgarian LGBTI organisations co-hosting the ILGA-Europe Annual Conference in Sofia this month. Here Denitsa talks about the recent elections in Bulgaria and what the possible outcome will mean for LGBTI people in the country.
read more
Blog

Meet Lilly from Bilitis in Sofia, co-host of ILGA-Europe’s Annual Conference

Lilly Dragoeva is the Executive Director of Bilitis, one of the three Bulgarian LGBTI organisations co-hosting the ILGA-Europe Annual Conference in Sofia this month. Here Lilly talks about what it means to have the largest European LGBTI activism conference in her country. 
read more
News

Theme for the ILGA-Europe 2022 Conference Announced.

As ILGA-Europe gears up in the organisation of our Annual Conference, which takes place in Sofia this October, the theme ‘Shaping the World to Come’ […]
read more
Blog

The timeline leading from anti-LGBTI Instagram posts to the “honour killing” of an LGBTI activist in Azerbaijan

The cousin of LGBTI activist Avaz Hafizli has been jailed for his horrific murder, which came on foot of protests against hateful Instagram posts by the Instagram star, Sevinj Huseynova, who called for the physical ‘removal’ of sexual minorities and trans people from Azerbaijan. The trial was a travesty of justice, according to activists.
read more
Blog

How we created our brand-new website to support LGBTI activism

After 18 months of planning and work, the team at ILGA-Europe are proud to introduce our brand-new website. It shows the range of work we do and LGBTI activists and organisations can now easily find the information they need. Keep reading to learn more about how it was developed and how you can make the most of it.
read more
Blog

What We Learned at Europe’s Largest Online LGBTI Conference

Evelyne Paradis, Executive Director of ILGA-Europe reflects on the annual Gathering, the online version of Europe and Central Asia’s LGBTI conference, and what it affirmed for the movement at this time of momentous change.
read more
Press Release

Turkey acquits 19 LGBTI+ Pride marchers, honouring fundamental human rights, domestic law, and international commitments

Leading European LGBTI rights organisation, ILGA-Europe welcomes the decision of a Turkish court to acquit 19 activists, who were charged with “unlawful assembly” for their […]
read more
Blog

Why online resource sharing is the way forward for the LGBTI movement

2020 proved to be a game-changer for LGBTI activists, sending almost every aspect of the work into the digital sphere. Luckily ILGA-Europe had been developing an online resource-sharing centre for a few years before COVID-19 hit, and we probably couldn’t have picked a better moment to launch it.
read more
Blog

How LGBTI activists can make terrific home-made videos

Guest blogger, Richard Roaf, director of VideoRev and an expert in helping activists develop low-budget viral campaign videos, shares his best tips for LGBTI activists filming home-made campaign videos and the learnings from the ‘Skills Boost’ workshop he conducted for ILGA-Europe.
read more
Blog

LGBTI activists create a Twitter storm for EU infringement procedures against Poland over so called ‘LGBT-free Zones’

ILGA-Europe launched an-hour long Twitter Storm demonstration on February 11, calling on the European Commission to take infringement procedures against Poland, making the Polish-based hashtag #infringementNOW trend
read more
Press Release

Turkish government steps up its attacks on LGBTI+ citizens

Europe’s leading LGBTI+ rights organisation, ILGA-Europe are alarmed to observe that in the past week the Turkish government has stepped up its systematic attacks on and defamation of LGBTI+ people and calls on President Erdo?an to guarantee the fundamental rights of all minorities without discrimination, as enshrined in the country’s Constitution.
read more
Press Release

Poland: All charges against LGBTI rights defenders charged for peaceful activism must be dropped, say Human Rights NGOs

The trial of three women accused of “offending religious beliefs” will take place, tomorrow on January 13 in Plock, Poland. The activists face up to two years in prison for disseminating posters of the Virgin Mary with a rainbow halo symbolic of the LGBTI flag. Six international human rights NGOs are calling for all charges to be dropped, and for the Polish authorities to amend their legislation and bring it in line with international and regional human rights standards. 
read more
Blog

“It feels as if we’re trapped with our abusers.” Ukrainian activist Anna Sharyhina tells the story of unhindered anti-LGBTI abuse in Kharkiv

Throughout 2020, LGBTI activists have been harassed, intimidated and threatened by well-known far right groups in Ukraine, while police and local authorities turn a blind eye. Here is activist Anna Sharyhina’s alarming story, and how you can lend her and other LGBTI Ukrainian activists your support.
read more
News

Turkish court postpones trial of 19 Pride attendees, infringing their right to fair judicial process

The Turkish courts’ postponement until next April of the trial of 19 people accused of “unlawful assembly” after taking part in an LGBTI Pride march last year is clearly infringing their right to a fair trial, and sending a worrying signal from the judiciary, says ILGA-Europe.
read more
News

Joint statement: The only just outcome is the acquittal of the METU Pride human rights defenders

We, the undersigned human rights organisations, believe that the only just outcome in the unfair prosecution of 19 human rights defenders for their participation in a peaceful Pride march on the campus of Ankara’s Middle East Technical University (METU) on 10 May 2019 is their wholesale acquittal at their next hearing on 10 December at 09:00 UTC+3.
read more
Blog

An evolving movement: What we learned from Europe’s largest LGBTI Gathering

The virtual replacement for ILGA-Europe’s annual conference, The Gathering Online 2020, was the largest coming together of LGBTI activists from across Europe and Central Asia since Covid-19 began, and a new collective agenda became fully apparent. ILGA-Europe’s Executive Director, Evelyne Paradis, reflects on a ground-breaking experience.
read more