IDAHOT 2014 in Albania included the premiere of the first documentary on LGBT communities in the country, a Festival of Diversity and a set of panels, and the 3rd Annual May 17 Gay Ride through the streets of the capital, Tirana.

Alliance Against Discrimination of LGBT and Pro LGBT organized the Third Tirana Gay Ride Against Homophobia at the “Boulevard of Martyrs” on “Mother Teresa” Square. You can watch a video of the action here:

IDAHOT 2014 Bike Ride in Tirana, Albania

Two groups also held a premiere screening of the documentary “SkaNdal” – the first ever documentary about the LGBT movement in Albania (with English subtitles). LGBT community members appeared for the first time with their faces and names and shared their personal stories about how the LGBT movement has changed their lives. You can watch the video trailer here:

Documentary film screening in Tirana, Albania.

Pink Embassy hosted a “Festival of Diversity” between 12-17 May, similarly to previous years. Activities included movie screenings, an NGO fair, parties and conferences. The group focused on Freedom of Expression through a specific media campaign on free speech/no hate speech.

Pink Embassy, in collaboration with the Human Rights House in Albania and Open Mind Spectrum Albania (OMSA), and Affiliate of Youth for Human Rights International (YHRI), also jointly organized the first LGBT Pride in Albania under the slogan: Say YES LOVE! About 60 activists from Albania as well as Macedonian human rights activists attended the event.

Say YES LOVE! Pride event in Tirana for IDAHOT 2014.

A video of Say YES LOVE! Pride can be viewed here:

Further information

• Historia Ime: IDAHOT 2014, ‘a three part journey to acceptance‘
• About the 3rd Annual Ride: www.tiranagayride.com
• Information on Pink Embassy events: www.pinkembassy.al

All of the events in Tirana, Albania were organised jointly by three groups: Pink Embassy, Aleanca LGBT, and United for LGBT Cause (ProLGBT).

IDAHO Gay Bike (P) Ride, Tirana

Dozens of LGBT activists biked on May 17th in the main Boulevard of Tirana with bicycles from Ecovolis, wearing T-shirts that read “Gay (P) Ride Against Homophobia”.

This was the second time that such an event took place in Albania, but this year the number of participants increased considerably. The LGBT activists biked in boulevard accompanied by the police. With was a culminating event of several activities in the frame of the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia.

Source.

Young boys and girls in this cycling were accompanied by Mr. Totozani, the Albanian Ombudsman. Ms. Baraku the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner and representatives of the international community.

Local activist Vincent W.J. van Gerven Oei reports: ‘the Second Annual Gay Ride, which became basically our Albanian take on the pride events that are held around the world, turned out to be a great success, without smoke bombs, and many participants from the community as well as straight allies. Excuse my jubilant tone, but it is quite something when you’re able to pull off biking around on the main boulevard of Tirana, escorted by the police, with people applauding on the sidewalk and massive (and positive!) media coverage in a Balkan country…’

Footage of the ride can be viewed here:

In a more minor repeat of last year’s events, after the event was finished, a group of LGBT activists were attacked with tear gas explosives at the premises of a bar in the vicinity of the Academy of Arts, by two unidentified young men. Gerven Oei gives a positive spin to the incident ‘Ok ok and people did throw smoke bombs at us, but only after the Gay Ride’.

Bike ride participants attacked with tear gas explosives. Source.

Article 1 Exhibition

Tirana also received the Swedish exhibition “Article 1″ (in partnership with the Unstraight Museum of Sweden). Local activist Vincent W.J. van Gerven Oei hailed the event a success: ‘The exhibition “Art. 1″ consisted of several exhibits provided by different Swedish museum, surrounding the centerpiece with objects and stories from the Albanian LGBT community, as well as prints from the previous “Kukafshehti” exhibition. When first conceived we hardly thought it possible to enter such a state institution with an exhibition on the lives and loves of the community, but in the end we were met with hospitality, a great (though initially hesitant) staff, and we managed to hang three huge banners featuring the Swedish “Queer Queen” Christina smoking a pipe immediately below Mother Albania holding her rifle. The Albanian LGBT community had entered the state! The two-weeks exhibition was accompanied by film screenings of “Parada” and “How To Survive a Plague,” panel discussions on the relation between art, media, and the LGBT community, lesbianism and feminism, and the role of art institutions in representing “minor” histories. An enormous amount of visitors came to see the exhibition and attended the panels.’

Activists hail Article 1 Exhibition a success ! Source.

For more info see: http://historia-ime.com/en/about-us-ne.html // http://www.aleancalgbt.org/

Straight Allies Presented with Awards

Activists also joined together to recognise excellence in fighting discrimination, amongst well-known ‘straight allies’ in Albania. Before May 17, activists created a short list of 12 prominent allies in the public eye. And at the ceremony itself, gave awards to all 12 finalists.

You can find info about the 12 prizes, including who was nominated and why, at the Historia Ime news portal:

The ceremony is also available to watch online in HD:

“I don’t have words to explain how great I felt during those 20 minutes of biking along the main boulevard. That boulevard – that great and long boulevard – was only for us. In those 20 minutes, we did what Albania has failed to do within these past 20 years,” said one of the cyclists.

The ride was followed by a visit to Vlora, where activists held an open forum with students, supported by the Italian Consulate in Vlora. A photographic exhibition entitled “Kukafshehti” [Hide and Seek] on LGBT Life in Albania was also held at Tirana Express gallery. It was the first exhibition to address the gay community as an integral part of Albanian society and reflected on various aspects of LGBT life in Albania, from relationships between gay couples to the hardships of life faced by many transgender people. The exhibition also included videos on LGBT activism in the past three years, a short movie on LGBTs by students of the Academy of Arts, and an awareness-raising video on LGBT rights.

A “Rock against Homophobia” concert was held at the gallery to coincide with the launch of the photographic exhibition and featured several young Albanian rock bands who support LGBT rights and some of the Albania’s best DJs.

Activists marked the Day itself with a landmark “Festival of Diversity” in Tirana as a way to advocate against homophobia and transphobia. It was the first time such a public gathering was be held in an open space in Albania.

Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands Henk G.C. van den Dool spoke at the event, together with Albanian government representatives, the Ombudsman and the Commissioner for Anti-Discrimination, other diplomats and civil society human rights activists. Other events include held include presentations on LGBT rights at public and private universities and a series of public awareness-raising activities, including the distribution of leaflets and posters in Tirana in support of LGBT rights and the release of balloons bearing a love message by members of the LGBT community.

A 30-second TV spot in support of LGBT rights featuring Albanian public figures (activists, artists, journalists) was also produced and broadcast on the main TV stations.