LGBT Outreach In Albania - A Grassroots Grant Project

The Outreach Team! All smiles as we celebrate the conclusion of our project.

LGBT Outreach - A Peace Corps Grant (SPA) Partnership Project

Overall, the grant went well. We worked in partnership with representatives from two NGOs and visited areas outside of Tirana to give high-school students, university students and other community members the opportunity to meet an LGBT person face-to-face and to ask them questions. We also ended up using the SkaNdal documentary as a tool to ease them into the subject matter. This proved highly-effective, and in hindsight, a prudent measure in some more isolated areas. 

Xheni explaining a group activity at our session in port city of Durres.

We successfully reached out to more than 250 individuals across 13 communities outside of Tirana and educated participants on LGBT issues in Albania. We worked with two NGOs to organize each outreach session in partnership with local Peace Corps Volunteers. We also met with potential community leaders during each session to build a more sustainable network of contacts for our NGO partners.

Hanging out after a fun informal discussion. Many girls reported knowing a gay person in their community!

Our initial objective had not changed much from our plan. We had some variation with regards to the level of LGBT awareness among our participants, thus we had to make adjustments to our presentation as went along. Through close collaboration with the Peace Corps volunteers, we were able to appropriately gauge the audience and cater the presentation accordingly. For example, some communities had already been aware of LGBT issues, thus we focused mainly on discussion and critical thinking topics relating to human rights and society. For those groups who were less aware of such issues prior to our visit, we decided to show the documentary and allow the audience space to ask basic questions before we presented. 

A community partner holding up a drawing from an activity - "Draw a Lesbian or Gay Man"

The community feeling was usually very positive. We had some instanced where the participants had stated some concern or reservations about the subject matter. For example, in Saranda, there was one woman who had religious beliefs that did not allow for LGBT acceptance. She stated that she didn’t have any personal feelings about it, but that she couldn’t accept it because of her religion. The presenters responded by thanking her for her honesty, and for her respect by attending the session and for voicing her opinion. Again, we re-iterated that our goal was simply to present the information and allow them to form their opinions themselves. That particular participant ended up spending more time interacting with the speakers after the session and even took a photo, smiling with them afterwards. We have experience this type of understanding several times throughout this project. Even if people had objections to LGBT people, they were still open to learning about this issue, and showed appreciation our outreach efforts. 

The girls from the GLOW National Conference were among the brightest, most considerate we have met in Albania

Through the strengthening of their outreach network, the NGOs increased their capacities. Each engagement was an opportunity for them to meet other Albanian community members and service providers across the country. Through debrief sessions after each engagement, partnering NGOs gained valuable perspective from the input of participants, Peace Corps volunteer liaisons and the local hosting service provider. Peace Corps volunteers provided feedback on outreach methods and presentation material, thus allowing for more successful engagements. Throughout this grant period, PC Volunteers also worked directly with directors of the partnering NGOs to discuss fundraising strategies as well as outreach methods for events and promotion. 

Participants in Lezha re-evaluating stereotypes through a critical thinking exercise

The network built throughout this grant will allow the NGOs to do outreach through such contacts, with less need for Peace Corps volunteer coordination. With these communities now engaged and primed with these initial visits, future engagement will be easier and thus have more chance at being successful. Also, the skills build by members of the NGO (both experiential and technical) will set them up for better outreach moving forward.

A group photo after our session in Elbasan. We had a great discussion going, with some very interesting questions.

Kristi, Xheni and Gene sharing their wisdom and answering questions in the northern town of Kukes

The response was a lot more positive than initially expected. Event participants were a lot more welcoming of the subject matter and a lot more engaging than the NGOs had anticipated. The NGOs were quite impressed by the level of progressive attitudes among their fellow Albanians. There were a couple participants who were not enthusiastic about the topics, but due to our strategy to only engage interested parties, such interactions were not very common at all, and every time one came up, it was discussed and resolved during the sessions. We left every session with a good impression and on good terms with both event organizers and participants. After receiving feedback from one session held in Durres with the GLOW group, we heard that one parent was concerned with the subject matter presented to their daughter and that they disagreed with such education due to their religious beliefs. 

Outreach often means sharing personal experiences. For me that meant 'coming out' to each audience.

Recommendations include continuing such collaborative efforts. Peace Corps volunteers should continue to welcome Aleanca and ProLGBT into their communities. Although the general impression of LGBT issues in Albania is that such awareness and acceptance does not exist, we have seen quite the opposite reaction from the majority of our participants. 

Alba fielding questions from the audience and Gene explaining what it means to be an Ally.

 

Further efforts should be made to work with the NGOs on an organizational capacity basis, supporting their existing efforts, in partnership with host country leadership. The efforts of the government of Albania align well with the goals of the NGOs, thus Peace Corps support of these efforts to move towards EU acceptance should be provided in some form.

Lessons Learned and Promising Practices

Post-session selfie with the fabulous girls from Korce!

We learned that it is better to engage interested groups rather than trying to fit a lot of people into a session. The response is usually better when we have the chance to sit and engage with each person in some way one on one. We also found that it is always a good idea to allow them to ask questions anonymously, as most are too shy to ask it out loud. We did this in several communities and got a better response than asking out to the group as a whole. We of course used the SkaNdal documentary to ease participants into the subject matter. We feel that as the LGBT rights movement progresses, future documentaries should be screened to keep communities informed. 

Smaller groups proved to be among the best engagements we had. This one in Berat was truly special.

Lastly, face to face interaction is everything. We have found that if someone has had a positive interaction with an LGBT person, that this is enough for them to accept LGBT people in their life. Thus we tried our best to be respectful of different and even opposing opinions, leaving each session as ‘friends’ with our audience. The most important thing here was leaving with a good impression.

Larger groups allowed us to reach out to a wider audience. Many thanks to our teacher partners!

I'm Coming Home!

Partying it up on my 34th birthday, wearing the official group 17 shirt and new qeleshe hat (gift from my friend Arbi)

It's official! My last day as a Peace Corps Volunteer here in Albania will be May 18th, 2016.

I will be returning to the United States (after a few short excursions) in late May, 2016. After all, if you were living in Europe, wouldn't you visit another country for the price of a domestic trip within the US? Although money is getting quite tight (read: extremely tight) after having lived off of bare minimum Peace Corps "wages," I think it worth it to visit a few capital cities before I head back. I'm thinking Istanbul,  Athens, & Reykjavik.

One of my Albanian friends in Librazhd

Also, after careful consideration, I have decided to move to the Washington, DC area for the next phase of my life. Although I've considered San Francisco/Bay Area/San Jose my home for most of my life, I feel that at this point I'd very much like to spend more time with my east-coast family (brother's family, aunts, uncles and cousins). I will also be starting my journey to become a Psychiatric Nurse. That means returning to school after a 11 year break (since graduating from UC Berkeley). I'm very excited to start on the path towards nursing practice, after all these years! I will have a nice chunk of time visiting my home base in SF/Bay Area, from late May through June. I'm looking forward to having many coffees and catching up with friends and family during this time - oh, and finding work and a place to live. lol

My home for the last two years

I still have about two and a half months left in my service and I still have two grants outstanding (Breast Cancer Rural Outreach, and LGBT Community Outreach). I have to finish and report out for both of these projects by mid-April. Doable, but not without its share of hustle. Hustle hustle hustle. It's not a bad thing. Quite the opposite. I appreciate the ability to do such work here in Albania. Both projects are nearing completion, so that's encouraging. So far, through these projects...

At least 186 women living in isolated, rural areas of eastern Albania have received education on Breast Cancer - have gained knowledge on how to do a self-exam and can identify signs, symptoms, and risk factors. 

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More than 150 students and community members in communities across Albania have gained awareness and deeper understanding regarding the LGBT civil rights movement in Albania, and have had a chance to ask questions, engage in critical thinking, and interact with an LGBT person (many for the first time).

Breaking the Ice

Winter is Persimmon season!

With temperatures hovering near freezing, life out here in Librazhd seems to be slowing down. It's like we are all preparing to hibernate. No one is scheduling any new activities for the rest of the year. It is a sort-of domino effect. If one person is out, then others hold off their planning and meetings until they return. This causes everyone else to put things on lockdown for the time being. Integration in Peace Corps is all about adjusting to your environment. When people say 'wait,' you wait. That being said, there is still much that can be done until the complete holiday shutdown. In fact, this has actually been a productive week. With two active grants, I am quite pleased to see things moving along. One grant for LGBT outreach and another for Breast Cancer.

University students posed for a group photo with presenters from Peace Corps and ProLGBT

The LGBT Outreach project has been progressing splendidly. Our outreach team (the "pink posse") held its third outreach session in the Southern sea-side town of Saranda. Response from the University level audience was primarily positive. A couple participants had an issue with acceptance of LGBT people, but it made for some good discussion. Despite some differing opinions, all participants were respectful and gave us their full attention throughout the session. I feel like if we allow people to ask the questions they need to ask in order to understand what being LGBT is like, then they might be more willing to change their pre-existing beliefs. If we can leave the audience with a good impression of us, it may help improve their overall opinion of LGBT in general. I believe that face-to-face interaction in very important. If you can like just one LGBT person, you will be so much more likely to be open to others. So far, we are seeing some mostly-positive reactions.

Students presenting on HIV

My counterpart and I held a session on HIV/AIDS with 8th and 9th graders at town about 30 minutes down the road. They actually knew many facts about this subject, which was a great surprise. This was through our work with the Directorate of Public Health in Librazhd (which essentially oversees Public Health outreach throughout the region - roughly 87,000 individuals.) We are trying to get out of the city of Librazhd and bring our lessons to more areas of need. Of course this is quite a challenge, as funding for such efforts is not always available. It is a mystery, but a reality - how can a community promotions department operate with a budget of 0? Usually my counterpart and I will end up paying for our work travel ourselves (which is rather silly, as neither of us is earning very much at all.)  We got a grant to fund our expense for the Breast Cancer project, but we are still left to our own devices for all other health lessons and outreach. If dipping into our wages can help us do our jobs more effectively, then it's just something that needs to be done. I do wonder what will happen when I eventually leave my position here. I hope my counterpart will find a sustainable way to keep on doing this good work.

Middle School students wore red ribbons to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS in a small town in Eastern Albania

Through my PCPP project my counterpart and I will be holding our second workshop in the isolated village of Stravaj, educating women about Breast Cancer. Planning these sessions are quite a challenge, as we must take much into consideration: weather (snow), transportation (it takes about 2 hours to get to these remote mountain villages) and potential for event participation (the day/time/weather all need to be right for them to show up). Once it snows, all bets are off and we must wait until the thaw to hold our sessions. In many developed areas, this might not be an issues, as people have cars and can drive and meet us there. Our project primarily targets some of the poorest areas of Albania, and in Europe by extension. These are places with internet, power, and cell phone access. Let's hope the weather holds up!

Coming Out in Albania

Me being gay in Albania. Pretty wild, right?

My name is Jon. I am a 33 year old American Peace Corps Volunteer living in a small town in eastern Albania. Librazhd is much like any other Albanian town: Chickens everywhere, grandmothers riding donkeys, and a regular call to prayer echoing from the local mosque. This has been my home for the last 17 months, and where I decided to come out as gay.

 

I have been out of the closet from the last 17 years, but Albania is much different from my hometown of San Francisco. So I accepted the fact that joining Peace Corps might mean going back in. However, after I moved to Albania, I found that the LGBT movement here is fast-progressing, and I wanted to do my part to support the brave women and men fighting for this cause. With encouragement from my loving parents, family, friends, and fellow Peace Corps volunteers, I felt ready to take this on.

 

I first considered requesting a move to the capital city of Tirana to do this LGBT work, as it would be safer to do it there. An activist friend suggested that I consider simply being myself in Librazhd. Would it be easy? No, probably not. Could anyone guarantee my safety? Nope. Might this crazy idea actually be worth the risk? You bet!

 

Still, I had worries. Despite making many friends, I felt like they would immediately reject me if they knew that I was gay; I wonder if many people would invest years of their life building friendships that could potentially turn violent.  This fear was also reinforced by people around me and from what I have read. Luckily, support came to me just in time from an unlikely source. 

 

Me and my best friend in Librazhd

The first Albanian in Librazhd I told was my best friend, a straight young man well known in the community. He already knew a lot about me and we had spent a lot of time together, and because I felt that if I were to have a reason to return to Librazhd after my Peace Corps service, I'd have to make at least one true friend here. This meant being my true self. 

 

I sat down with him over lunch and told him my truth. He was very supportive, and in fact had suspicions for some time. His cousin had asked him previously if I was gay, and it made him consider this. He told me:

"It doesn't matter to me. You are my brother. I accept you for the way you are. It makes no difference to me. I love you like family." 

It was hard not to tear up over his unexpected reaction. His sister (who lives in the United States, and who knew about me previously) had hinted that he would be accepting, but I was still worried. In small towns like this, if you decide to reveal a secret, once it is out there is no controlling the spread of gossip and rumor. Still, it was a risk that I wanted to take. I am so very glad that I did. 

 

Since telling my friend, word has been getting out. I thought it a good idea to simply let the gossip spread. I told my friend that if someone asks him about me, he is to tell them the truth. We are a team now. Every day I will come out to at least one new person. By the end of my service, most people here would have heard about the gay American man. 

 

My friends showing their support.

I recall one day coming out to two guys. They asked how I liked the girls here (guys often refer to a beautiful girl as a "peach", a vulgar term for a vagina) and my friend interjected and said "He's not interested in them. My friend Xhon here likes the banana, not the peach. Okay?" They simply said "Oh, okay." Bam, That's how it happened! Ever since that moment they have been very accepting and supportive. As least 30 people here now know about me being gay, and I have not been driven out of town with pitchforks yet. 

 

Albanians seem to value the opinions of Americans. I want to use that influence to help further rights for my LGBT brothers and sisters in Albania. My hope is that people will now have at least one person that they know of who is gay (and hopefully their impression of me is a positive one). I feel that simply to know and accept one gay person is enough to open their hearts to all. Maybe one day it will make it easier for a parent or family member to accept their gay child, brother, sister, or cousin.

"I care for what's in your mind, not about your sexual preference. To me, it's okay, and I care for you. You are my friend. That is what matters." – Librazhd resident, early 20s.

Me being me in Albania. :-)

Summer Reading In Autumn (And About 20 Years Late)

It's all about literature here in the Welsh 'town of books' - Hay-On-Wye

PLEASE COMMENT...
and write the name of the book you are reading (or one that you would recommend)!

The Welsh sure do love their 'Fifty Shades of Hay'!

As I mentioned in previous posts, I have long neglected my studies with regards to literature. I was never much into books as a young child. I would pretend to read them by memorizing some basic facts. As a result, I performed half as well as I could have in all my Literature classes. I fell quite behind my peers in knowledge of great works. It wasn't that I couldn't read. I could read very well. I have always had excellent vision and comprehension skills. I knew what I was reading, but I wasn't at all interested! Why would one read a fiction book anyway?! The story contained therein isn't true. So what could one learn from it? Oddly enough this mentality followed me all the way to college at the University of California Berkeley, where I continued to dive primarily only into works of non-fiction - books on language, psychology, cognition, neuro-science and the like.

What changed? I came across a little-known book called "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone." What started off as a little diversion to desperately escape the pain of my life at that time, turned into a succession of books that has not stopped since. (Although I am not the fastest reader...) I would read fiction and non-fiction. I would alternate genres. I would even read a couple books at the same time. Typically I would read a fiction/fantasy book before bed, a mystery or classic book while traveling, and a non-fiction or historical fiction book on vacation.

I have often felt somewhat deprived for not having read "the greats." I may have actually read through a decent number of them, but hardly remember the stories at this point. Of course I cannot blame my English Lit teachers as they tried their best to encourage me. The truth is, I had to learn to love reading. That never happened until after college. I never picked up a book for fun unless it was to learn a language or learn something interesting or practical. What I didn't know growing up was that not only could one benefit from reading with regards to overall English comprehension but also benefit through the development of one's critical thinking skills. I also didn't know that reading could be, like, fun!

Here's my list of so-called "summer reading" list that I have assigned myself. It is a growing, living list that will hopefully wax and wane as I finish each work and learn of new ones to add. Without further ado, THE LIST (currently at 25). Please feel free to add your suggestions in the comment section.

Here's the queue (in reverse order):

25. Evelyn Waugh - Brideshead Revisited
24. Victor Hugo - The Hunchback of Notre Dame
23. Oscar Wilde - The Importance of Being Earnest
22. Margaret Atwood - Alias Grace
21. James Joyce - Ulysses
20. Neal Stephenson - Seveneves
19. Virginia Woolf - Mrs. Dalloway
18. Tea Obreht - The Tiger's Wife
17. Chris Cleave - Little Bee
16. George Orwell - Animal Farm
15. Toni Morrison - Beloved
14. Allison Levine - On the Edge
13. Fyodor Dostoyevsky - Notes from the Underground
12. Plato - The Republic
11. Friedrich Nietzsche - Thus Spake Zarathustra A book for all and none
10. Miguel De Cervantes Saavedra - Don Quixote
9. H.G. Wells - The War of the Worlds
8. Sunzi - The Art of War
7. Sir Saint Thomas More - Utopia
6. James Baldwin - Giovanni's Room
5. Yann Martel - Life of Pi
4. Stephen Coryelle - Elves In Oregon
3. Christopher Isherwood - Christopher and His Kind
2. Ismail Kadare - The Siege
1. Muriel Spark - The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie

Currently reading: George Orwell - 1984

Last read: The Stranger by Albert Camus

Hate Speech On YouTube: Freedom or Violation?

After I returned from Belgrade Pride, I decided to create a short video about this significant event. Shortly thereafter someone posted a comment calling me (supposedly) a very derogatory word in Serbian. That was my first comment! Not a 'bravo,' 'we support you,' or 'great job' - just hate speech. My first instinct was to delete the comment. Then I thought about responding instead. I decided on the latter. It got me thinking about whether speech like this is even permitted on Youtube. I certainly see it quite frequently on other comment feeds. The YouTube comments section seems to be a dumping ground for use-less, vitriolic, hate-filled speech. I often wonder why they let such behavior persist? Many say that it is allowed because it support a freedom of speech. I wonder if they would hold that opinion if that video was posted by their daughter or son. I wonder if they would defend their position if the hate speech was directed at a loved one. I wonder these things... So....

I recently did a poll to ask folks whether they thought 'hate speech' should be banned from the YouTube comments section. The results were rather shocking. In fact, the distribution of votes was pretty even across the board, with half the respondents saying 'yes' and the other saying 'no.' Does this surprise you?

Background
It is not very hard to find so-called hate speech on YouTube. Simply scroll down on any popular video and you might be shocked (or not) to see word garbage spewed onto large sections of the comment feed. Bigoted comments against women, people of different races, nationalities, sexual orientations, gender identities, body types, disabilities, religions, economic levels, or levels of education. Trash! So why is it there? Why does it remain if it is not positive? Why allow it in the first place? Why not ban such speech?

Just a taste of the lovely YouTube comments I see every single day. (these are the tame ones...)

'Hate Speech' Defined

1. (noun) Speech that attacks, threatens, or insults a person or group on the basis of national origin, ethnicity, color, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, or disability. (Random House)

 

In Law,  

Any speech, gesture or conduct, writing, or display which is forbidden because it may incite violence or prejudicial action against or by a protected individual or group, or because it disparages or intimidates a protected individual or group. The law may identify a a protected group by certain characteristics.

Hate speech is a communication that carries no meaning other than the expression of hatred for some group, especially in circumstances in which the communication is likely to provoke violence. It is an incitement to hatred primarily against a group of persons defined in terms of race, ethnicity, national origin, gender, religion, sexual orientation, and the like. Hate speech can be any form of expression regarded as offensive to racial, ethnic and religious groups and other discrete minorities or to women. (US Legal)

What About Facebook?
In 2013, the popular social network revised its policy regarding certain hate speech. The change didn't come from the kindness of their hearts but more rather the depth of their pocketbooks. Facebook is, after all, a business. No, the change came about from pressure from Women Action Media (WAM), The Everyday Sexism Project and writer and activist Soraya Chemaly. This was in regards to posted content endorsing domestic violence and rape. The campaign successfully urged major business to withdrawal their adverts from Facebook. (Huff Post) The result? Facebook acquiesced. But what about YouTube?

It's Distasteful, But Is It Legal?
YouTube discourages content that condones violence under 'Hateful Content':

"Our products are platforms for free expression. But we don't support content that promotes or condones violence against individuals or groups based on race or ethnic origin, religion, disability, gender, age, nationality, veteran status, or sexual orientation/gender identity, or whose primary purpose is inciting hatred on the basis of these core characteristics. This can be a delicate balancing act, but if the primary purpose is to attack a protected group, the content crosses the line." Community Guidelines

In fact, YouTube has specifically stated that 'Hate speech is not permitted.' (YouTube Policy Center)!
 So there it is. What does this mean, exactly?

"Hate speech refers to content that promotes violence or hatred against individuals or groups based on certain attributes..."

They encourage users to flag content, or file a report for repeated violations. Has anyone done this? What does this actually mean?

My Reflection
After all this poking around, I learned a lot from the side of the "free speech"ers. I began to see hate speech as an opportunity to start a dialogue. If only all hate-mongers actually wanted to engage in civil discourse... Sigh. Next time I see such speech, I'll be the first to open up that dialogue and see what happens. I'll even post it to my next blog. Such BS needs to be put on BLAST!

Belgrade Hosts LGBT Pride Parade, Less Police Indicates Progress

Participants were all smiles at the 2015 Belgrade LGBT Pride Parade

Re-posted from Historia-Ime.com

Belgrade, Serbia - More than 1,200 individuals gathered in Belgrade last Sunday (Sept. 21^st) to march in a pride parade to support the LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender) community in Serbia. This is the second year in a row that such a pride parade has happened in this central Balkan country without any incidence of violence. In 2010, parade-goers were met with hostility and violence from extremists, injuring at least 95 participants and police (according to the BBC). Last year, marchers were surrounded by thousands of Serbian riot police in an effort to ensure the safety of participants and the success of the event overall. This year saw a drastic decrease of 50% in police presence needed at the event (according to Civil Rights Defenders)

Serbia, a former Yugoslav state, is now an EU Candidate (according to BBC) and is negotiating its EU accession (according to World Bank). The parade has been seen as a test for the Serbian government to prove its commitment to EU standards on Human Rights (according to NBC News). In a show of support, marchers were joined by Serbia's European Integration Minister Jadranko Joksimovic, Culture and Information Minister Ivan Tasovac, and Belgrade Mayor Sinisa Mali. (according to RFERL). 

Bekim Asani, president of LGBT United Tetovo Macedonia has been a participant in the parade before and noted progress:

“I saw less people than last year but found a more supportive environment… Last year I was more scared. This year I was freer. It was real pride with a lot of music, dancing, and rainbow flags. For first time I saw people supporting the pride from their balconies and windows.”

Similar pride parades have occurred in the Balkan region, with varying degrees of acceptance from locals. Some communities have yet to host a pride event, such as in Niksic, Montenegro, where the government has banned such an event for the third time this year. Asani comments on the possibility of a pride event in his community “Macedonia is in deep political crisis... I can't say much about organizing pride. Who knows? Maybe soon…”

The Serbian Orthodox Church had condemned the parade in the past and had again staged a quiet, yet smaller protest this year, yet less violence and a smaller protest could indicate more acceptance among Serbians for LGBT people. Civil Rights Activist Ivan Mitic, 21, of Serbia, sees progress here, noting:

  

“It (the 2015 Belgrade Pride Parade) showed that we made a move forward - maybe a little one, but still, we made it. If you read comments on forums, there is so much hate speech, but that is something that is hard to change. Journalists had more positive reporting than in previous years. Despite all those negative comments… there were many comments showing support to pride and explaining (…) why is it important.”  

-          Written by Jon Breen, LGBT Rights Activist