Reassessment of the first Pride in Tbilisi

We are back from our journey through the South Caucasus. Rich in impressions, grateful for the interesting discussions we had and full of energy to finish our film.

We have collected many new perspectives on the situation and learned a lot from our new friends, but also about ourselves. I noticed again how important and meaningful it is to deal directly with the people affected and above all: to listen to them.

In a previous article I wrote an evaluation of the first Pride in Tbilisi based on articles and the official facebook account of the Pride organizers. Now that we’ve talked to the activists on site, however, an expanded perspective opens up on what’s happening around the Pride. In order to live up to my claim of giving a voice to feminist and queer struggles, I now let these activists speak for themselves. Because what they have to say is important and broadens the view to those who speak far too rarely.

Already in the previous article I criticized the commercialization of today’s Pride Parades. Yes, stonewall was a riot, unfortunately there is little evidence of this in many countries today. And also an activist whom we met criticized this commercialization. The struggles of the LGBTIQ community could not be reduced to the Pride and actually they are conducted elsewhere. In everyday life.

The organisers in turn saw the Pride as a means to create more awareness against homophobia and transphobia, but in the end they only provoked more hatred against those who are affected by this misanthropy. The activist describes how the initiators were not in any conversation with the LGBT community, did not come out of it and finally carried out the Pride against the will of those who suffer greatly from the transphobic society.

Trans*people in Georgia are a group strongly affected by discrimination and exclusion. Most of them work as sex workers, even if sex work is prohibited. Many come from villages and rural areas because their families have rejected them. “Everyone is against them, the law, the police, the society and with the pride […] this was not the right way, they didn’t care [about what trans-people wanted], they said no I want to do it.” They organized the Pride in a way that was against the will and without communication to the community. This is particularly fatal in the sense that those whose rights have been demonstrated for suffer from the persistent and, in the opinion of the activists, increased hatred. And also another activist confirmed this impression and declared that for similar reasons she did not participate at the demonstration.

For us, these conversations opened up a glimpse into the interior of the events. A view that is not made accessible to the public and can hardly become so. When groups have different resources to generate audience, only the privileged are heard. But we have also come together to help people who do not have certain privileges to take up more public space. For this reason, I am happy to share this extended view of the first Pride in Tbilisi.

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