FGG at Budapest Pride

Heeding the call of the EGLSF to support plans for EuroGames 2012 in Budapest after recent parliamentary elections brought to power a government less favorable to LGBT issues, FGG Officer for Ceremonies Darl Schaaff attended the Budapest Pride parade. Here is a brief report from Darl on the parade and the party that followed.

This summer I've attended Pride parades in Berlin, with an estimated 850,000 people watching and participating, and in Cologne, with an estimated one million people in attendance. So it was fascinating to take part in the Pride parade in Budapest, among only about 100 marchers and a small but enthusiastic crowd watching.

The Berlin parade and the Cologne parade each took hours to complete. In Budapest it was a matter of blocks and minutes. Better attended was the closing party, held at a night club with a few hundred people. What struck me was the sheer volume of police assigned to watch the party venue. At any time there were a minimum of 8 to 12 uniformed officers on the streets around the club.


My trip there was itself an adventure. I decided to "go local" and so boarded a train headed (I hoped) in the right direction. I was wearing my FGG shirt and was very aware that many people were talking about it. Feeling a bit alone I stared out the window, hoping I could read the Hungarian street signs and get off at the right stop. On board were five women. One of them read my shirt, smiled, and then moved to another location with her friends. Shortly later a small hand touched my shoulder and in very broken English I was asked... "Where are you going?". I said (loudly): "To the Pride party!" and showed her my scribbled address. She smiled and told me they were also going and they would take me, which was a good thing, because the venue was a few blocks away via some narrow winding streets.

At the location was an outdoor bar where several men sat drinking. The women became very nervous and told me we were leaving, because the men were bad and they were very afraid to be there. The street already had a number of police standing nearby. Their fear took me by surprise. I assured them I would be fine and went to a restaurant there for a bite to eat. Sitting outside and surrounded by FIFA-watching football fans, I smiled, nodded and ate alone watching the game. There were a few points, some whispering but I looked each of them in the eye and smiled. By 1:30 I had met and talked to a number of curious young people who were amazed that there existed an organization of GLBT people playing sports and having a world presence. For them (and for me) it seemed far from the humble day's experience. I told each that what they were doing was important and just the beginning of change in their own lives and those of the men and women who would follow.

For some that seemed a dream in the midst of the police presence and the fear of the people I met...

The FGG will do its best to help ensure that the 2012 EuroGames take place in Budapest, that they are a success, and that the LGBT sports movement launched in 1982 by Tom Waddell can continue to change the world.