The GLAS Foundation opened the exhibition “Balkan Pride # Balkan Pride” in Plovdiv

The exhibition, featuring photos from the Balkan pride marches, artifacts and personal stories, was officially opened on July 4, at SKLAD in Plovdiv, in the presence of dozens of guests, diplomats, representatives of the local LGBT community, activists.

More than 30 photographs tell the story of LGBT people’s equal rights movement in Southeastern Europe, and anti-pride demonstrations and counter-protests are included too. The exhibition can be seen between 11 am and 7 pm each day until July 16.

“In year when we celebrate the 50 year anniversary of the Stonewall riots in New York, which led to the birth of the first Pride, the discrimination against the Plovdiv project only proves how important it is for us as a community to continue to fight for equal rights for all Bulgarian citizens and to have a dialogue about our belonging to the society, “said Simeon Vassilev of the GLAS Foundation, the organizer of the opening project.

The exhibition is part of the Plovdiv 2019 program. Svetlana Kuyumdzhieva, the artistic director of the Foundation, which hosted the exhibition, read during the opening a part of the Charter of Human Rights, recalling one of the objectives of the initiative, namely to bring together the different communities. She also shared the fact that this year in Matera, Italy, would be held the first pride with the support of the Italian Foundation, which organizes the Capital of culture initiative there.

The GLAS Foundation announced yesterday that some of the photos of “Balkan Pride # Balkan Pride” will be shown in Sofia starting from July 22 this year, at the outdoor summer cinema of the National Palace of Culture. The project is part of the calendar of cultural events of Sofia Municipality and is co-financed by the Culture Program.

A public discussion on traditional Balkan values and identity will be held in Plovdiv on 16 July at 6.30 pm for the closure of the project in Plovdiv. Prof. Ivaylo Dichev, Philip Vulovic from Belgrade Pride, Dimitar Bogdanov and Simeon Vassilev from the GLAS Foundation and the organizing committee of Sofia Pride are going to participate. After the discussion an acoustic concert will be delivered by Mila Robert at 9 pm in ThEATre on 38 Kniaz Alexander I Street in Plovdiv. This is the first appearance in Plovdiv of the young performer, who made herself known with her cover “Kvartalna Krachma” and the song dedicated to the repairs in the capital. Both events are free entry.

The Pride marches in the Balkans, Europe and the world are still extremely important because of all the stigma and hatred that the LGBTI people face on a daily basis – family and friend rejection, hate violence, school harassment, discrimination at work and in the sphere of education, lack of legal regulation of LGBTI people’s relationships. Pride is among the few events that make public these inequalities.