Covering LGBT issues in transnational journalism

Viktor Pylypenko was one of the first soldiers who publicly came out in the Ukrainian army in 2018. He started the initiative “LGBT Military”, led a group at Kyiv Pride and is active in NGO Fulcrum Ukraine to promote and advocate LGBT rights. In the interview he talks...

Cinema against homophobia “LGBT and other subcultures, don’t take out your trash on the outside. Your home is your fortress,” blasts from a projected wall in an open-space commune-style living room, watched by an artsy crowd. The member of the “Camaraderie Sect”...

Ukrainian LGBT+ couples can't legalize their relationships, visit each other in the intensive care unit or register rights to the partner's child who they are raising together. The law "On Civil Partnership", the draft of which was supposed to be developed by the...

“Are you ready to express your social position? After all, the visibility of the community is a social act. And to be visible, you need the courage to speak.” This comment belongs to German journalist Stephanie Kuhnen, the author of a book on the visibility of...

Українські ЛГБТ+ пари не можуть узаконити свої стосунки, навідати одне одного у реанімації, зареєструвати права на дитину партнера або партнерки. Законодавчо закріпити їхні відносини має ЗУ «Про цивільне партнерство», проєкт якого ще три роки тому мав розробити...

They fall, they stand up, they survive and rise: as a minority group that identifies with a gender different than the one assigned to them at birth, transgender people often feel mistreated, misunderstood and detached from the rest of the world. And the world, in...

The new generation of LGBT activists in Ukraine, and how the migrated generation of former activists sees the chances for the political fight in the country today   When I had the honor to visit Ukraine for the first time around the year 2000 as a guest of the...

Less information finds its way out from the occupied areas in the Donbas region. Armed paramilitary forces control everyday life in the regions around Luhansk and Donetsk. Minorities, such as LGBTQ people, suffer from this situation.   When Kyrylo Samozdra...

«Чи готові ви висловлювати свою соціальну позицію? Адже видимість спільноти – це соціальний вчинок. І щоб бути видимим, потрібна сміливість говорити». Цей коментар належить німецькій журналістці Стефані Кюхнен (Stephanie Kuhnen), авторці книжки про видимість лесбійок...

Антон Дорох, активіст з України, розповів про подвійну дискримінацію ЛГБТІК-мігрантів в Німеччині та про конфлікти інтересів всередині російськомовної організації «Quarteera» у Берліні.   Неурядова організація «Квартира» у Берліні здійснює соціальні, культурні та...

For a sphere that’s constantly chasing world records, sport is surprisingly slow in accepting diversity. It’s hard for Ukraine not to get jealous of Germany with its vibrant LGBTQ+ culture and dozens of rainbow communities. But is it all so bright and fun for its...

Accepting the otherness of another person is a sign of awareness and education, in addition to emotional intelligence. Accepting your own otherness is a sign of inner strength. Accepting the otherness of its citizens is a sign of a civilized state that lives...

Activist from Ukraine among Russian-speaking LGBT people in Germany: “Perhaps other countries in the post-Soviet space aren’t developing so rapidly”   Anton Dorokh, an activist from Ukraine, talked about the double discrimination of LGBT refugees in Germany and...

Besides the Corona pandemic, there is a second epidemic in Ukraine: HIV. Why the queer community suffers particularly from it.   In December, in Pavlo Boiko's store in Kyiv, if you want, you can get a free HIV rapid test with your purchase. This is not a strange...

I applied for this journalist exchange hoping to find my Ukrainian roots, but my Ukrainian roots found me first.   Though I’ve lived in Berlin since 2017, I grew up near Cleveland, Ohio, a former steel center in the American Rust Belt. Northern Ohio is a very...

How to show visibility in a year like 2020? LGBT+ groups in Ukraine came up with creative ideas, even a Pride march was organized. Some regional organizations talk about their challenges of showing visibility every year and how these challenges have increased under...

The Corona crisis sends queer people back to the closet. The LGBTIQ community loses its safe spaces. In the neighbouring countries Poland and Russia consolidate homo- and transphobic moods, initiatives and even laws. Inside Ukraine far-right groups become...

The Corona crisis sends queer people back to the closet. The LGBTIQ community loses its safe spaces. In the neighbouring countries Poland and Russia consolidate homo- and transphobic moods, initiatives and even laws. Inside Ukraine far-right groups become stronger and...

The Corona crisis sends queer people back to the closet. The LGBTIQ community loses its safe spaces. In the neighbouring countries Poland and Russia consolidate homo- and transphobic moods, initiatives and even laws. Inside Ukraine far-right groups become...

“Changes won’t be fast, but they are happening.” Photographer and activist Nikita Karimov is an optimist. A lot has already been achieved for the visibility of the LGBTQ community in Ukraine over the last years. More and more people refuse to hide who they are,...

Svitlana Valko is a Ukrainian activist specifically focused on hate crimes. She monitors acts of digital and/or physical violence against LGBT activists for several NGOs. She spared some time to talk to Gender Z about the current situation in her country and the...

Kateryna works as a primary school teacher in an elementary school. Knowing that sex education is still an issue in Ukraine, she strives to create a safe space in her class for all children when it comes to different topics, including LGBT.   How long have you...

Large companies are often slammed for pinkwashing when they publicly support LGBTQI causes and people. But in Ukraine, where the Pride movement is barely a decade old, support from big businesses could make all the difference for acceptance of queer rights.   In...

A conversation with Viktor Pylypenko about how gay Ukrainian soldiers fight for human rights and make the LGBTQ* community more visible.   Before 2018 Ukrainian society was convinced that there is no such thing as LGBTQ* soldiers in the military. Taking a look at...