A glimpse into the life of a Peace Corps volunteer currently serving in Albania. Join me as I experience this wondrous country located in the heart of Eastern Europe.
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The sign is in Serbian means 'My rights, my demands' (rough translation)
What an amazing last several days this has been! I have been back in Librazhd for a day now, and so far nobody in my community has mentioned anything about my participation in the pride event. The pitchforks never made an appearance thankfully! It is a bit strange really, after an experience like this. I come back to Librazhd with nothing but a group of young guys (cunes) hollering at me in the street, and making meaningless conversation. They were most likely drunk and just being silly, but I just thought it so weird. They asked what I was up to. I said I just came back from Serbia. They were shocked, and a few seconds later, asked if I met a nice Serbian girl. Sigh......... And these are people who can see all my Facebook posts! I'm laughing and crying at the same time. Mostly, I'm just glad to be back. The truth is I missed Librazhd. I really did.
A proud moment holding the Pride flag down the streets of Belgrade. That's me in the blue shirt (in case you didn't know)
Well-protected, at any cost.
I think sometimes that I should be less ostentatious about my gay-ness - that I should tone it down a bit. To go from diva to queen, or queen to fairy, or something like that. I don't know the order. Anyway. When I was walking up to the parade, I just felt a sudden rush of adrenaline that really made me want to be... well... me! I wanted to be me for a long time now. Being in Peace Corps kinda puts one in an awkward situation of potentially going back in the closet. That's what happened to me. Well, I decided to go in the closet because it was suggested and took that suggestion. But now? Well, now I'm a big 'ol gay jack-in-the-box., and I can't seem to but the lid back on... Pop! There I go again, bustin' out the door! No closet for me. No sir-ee.
Me and my friend Bunny
Many of you reading might be thinking "oh hell, here we go... I hope he knows what he's doing." Actually, that's what I think to myself too! The truth is, no one has ever been in this particular situation before. Not now. Not in Albania. Not in my community. Not me. So....
Is it a wise decision to continue down this path? I believe so. Do I know it will be completely safe? Absolutely not. How do I feel about it? Scared, but certain. This is the right thing to do.
I'd always prefer to be me, even if it means walking blindly into the night. This past week has strengthened my resolve, and further solidified my conviction.
From left to right - Peter Tatchell (Peter Tatchell Foundation), Tanya Domi (Columbia University), Brian Silva (Marriage Equality USA), Irene Hemelaar (LGBTI Emancipation), and Frank Van Dalen (Politieke Academie, Amsterdam)
During the week leading up to the Pride Parade, they held the Belgrade Pride Conference presented by Civil Rights Defenders. I found the lectures and panels quite interesting. Discussions included LGBT activists speaking on the realities of their respective communities, local journalists articulating the struggles of the media in Serbia, NGOs speaking about grassroots efforts, and elected officials and representatives putting the LGBT discussion in terms of European Integration and refugees. The buzzword of the week was "Cross-sectionality" seeing our struggles not as one singular effort, but as an interaction of many intersecting populations and needs, taking every perspective into account. The panels gave everyone in the room a chance to hear many different perspectives and to learn about the unique situation of each LGBT person in that room. Hopefully we all came out of that room appreciating just how unique we all are.
A panel of LGBT Activists (from left to right) - Mona (Kosovo), Lejla (Bosnia), Xheni (Albania) and Danijel (Montenegro); Moderator Vasilika (Albania)
During the course of the week, I got the chance to meet queer activists from all over the Balkans - Macedonia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Serbia, Greece, Albania, and Bosnia/Herzegovina. Although I don't know any Greek, and only a few phrases in Serbian, most people spoke enough English to converse. I could speak with the Albanians and Kosovars as they both speak Albanian. Lucky for me, at a conference like this, pretty much all the debates, lectures and panels are held in English. We did have headsets for the sessions where multiple languages were spoken. At times I found it hard to really understand the translations coming through the headsets, but it was certainly better than nothing. I feel so grateful to hear their opinions and viewpoints. Having a voice is what this is all about. The freedom to express ourselves. The freedom to get together, assemble, and make ourselves known to the world. :-)
We may live in different countries, but we are activists. We are family.
Belgrade Pride 2010 - Photo credit: http://kaosgl.org/page.php?id=9540
I will attending a conference in Belgrade, Serbia this week at the invitation of an organization in Albania called Civil Rights Defenders. The focus will be Belgrade LGBT Pride. Wow. Let that sink in for a moment.
If Serbia is not the first place you associate with LGBT Pride, you are not alone. Many Americans only recall Serbia from its role in bloody rivalries and wars for independence during post-Yugoslavia days of the early 1990's. Words like Croats, Serbs, and Bosnians were thrown around like hot coals from journos setting the fears of many an American ablaze. This is not the place where one throws a Pride. Or is it?
The struggle for LGBT rights in this land-locked Eastern European country has not been easy. Back in 2010, the parade was seen with an anti-gay riot . Some 5,000 police held back the anti-gay rioters from event participants.
Belgrade Pride 2010: Photo from: http://kaosgl.org/
Truth be told, after I read this, I was initially somewhat nervous about going. But never once did I think twice about wanting to go. This is what I need to do. I need to help people here. I need to be there because other people can't. I need to show up and do my part because other LGBT individuals will die if I don't. I need to march, because somebody marched for me in 1970 in San Francisco. I wouldn't have the life I have today if they didn't. We'd still be living the Anita Bryant era of horror and BS.
I was able to attend the first LGBT March in Albanian history last year (although there has been an annual LGBT bike ride each year that started around 5 years ago). This year I will be able to attend another groundbreaking march. Although it may not be the first pride parade there, it is so very important. I thought of Albania's bloody feuds with the so-called neighbors to the north. After the conflict between Albania and Serbia over Kosovo's independence from Serbia, the two countries still seem to keep their distance. (Including the infamous Albania-Serbia futbol match). Political relations between the two seem amicable, yet with a seeming undercurrent of resentment over Kosovo.
Tirana Gay Ride 2014!
All politics aside, I will be there on a completely different capacity. I will be there to support Belgrade Pride and the Balkan LGBT Community. Previous years saw conflict, violence and civil unrest. As with any civil rights movement, things are getting better. Just how much better it is now? Well, I suppose we will find out. With many of the Balkan's best LGBT activists gathered together, the stage is set for quite a spectacle. And what a spectacle it will be.
