Romain Mancinelli-Mirti from Rosa Lëtzebuerg takes a look at the issue of gay love in Luxembourg and explores the different resources available for the LGBT community.
Gay love: a hot topic
So, Luxembourg has a gay Prime Minister and Vice-PM too, making it the first country to have two openly gay men in the two top positions in government. But does it mean anything at all? A majority of parliament voted in favour of gay marriage last year just before the elections and they were planning on making it a law by the end of 2013 in any case. What Mr Bettel did promise is that the marriage and adoption law will pass this year before the summer break. There will be changes to the lives of gay Luxembourgers in the Duchy.
Gay and gay love is a big topic around the world at the moment, with Russia, France and Uganda (to name but a few) consistently in the news about controversial gay laws. The Duchy is an open-minded and tolerant country that promotes human rights and accepts everyone’s right to an opinion. Same-sex sexual activity was decriminalised in 1794 and the civil union was introduced in 2004. In 2009, the Government of Luxembourg announced its intention to legalise same-sex marriage together with the adoption.
Rosa Lëtzebuerg
Rosa Lëtzebuerg, the umbrella organisation for the LGBT community in Luxembourg, was founded in 1996 and counts over 200 members. Their aim is to “promote the civil rights of homosexuals and bisexuals and to fight against discrimination against them, to work in terms of social, cultural and legal matters for full equality of homosexuals and bisexuals, and to organise social and cultural activities that are in favour of homosexuals and bisexuals”. Rosa Lëtzebuerg has an active gay and lesbian group who organise walks and get-togethers, quarterly Queesch parties and an annual gaypride in Esch/Alzette called GayMat (come along).
It is head of the CIGALE – the information centre for gays and lesbians – where young and old can phone and have a private meeting with specially trained social workers. Whether you need help to come out or to digest that your child just came out, they will provide a competent ear to help you through the rough times. They also have a huge library, oriented around LGBTIQ literature.
If you want to get in touch with the association just visit their homepage at http://www.gay.lu/ (the English version is under construction). Rosa Lëtzebuerg and the CIGALE Team is always happy to help you with any question you could have.
www.gay.lu – www.rosa-letzebuerg.lu – www.cigale.lu
3, rue des Capucins L-1313 Luxembourg (5th floor)
Tel: 26 19 00 18
Mondays and Tuesdays 1pm-5pm
Wednesdays and Thursdays 2pm-8pm
(Thursdays for under 25s)
