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Description
For many people, being part of the LGBT+ community in the Lubelskie region is difficult and stressful, and demonstrating it might even be dangerous. The Lubelskie voivodship local council and approximately 25 local government authorities throughout the voivodship adopted a local government free of LGBT ideology homophobic resolution. Even in the voivodship capital, there is only one institution that openly supports non-heteronormative people. The city municipal authority cannot be counted on to provide support.This project aims to create a safe and non-committal space for young LGBT+ people to meet like-minded, open and supportive people, and where they are free to be themselves.We will provide a place that is open and broadly accessible (we envisage for instance sign language interpretation and assistance for people with vision impairment). We will hold integration, awareness, and artistic events for participants to get to know each other better, support each other, develop, build a network of contacts, and pursue passions and talent. We will provide permanent psychological and legal support and weekly meetings of an online LGBT+ support group. The participants will take an active part in creating and changing the venue, furnishing and decorating the premises, and planning further meetings and workshops. Training/workshops (14) will be held monthly on enhancing soft skills, self-advocacy, activism, self-acceptance, and combating discrimination. The main effects will be an increased sense of safety and internal integration of the local LGBTQ+ community, and more visible presence of the community in the city. Approximately forty people LGBT+ people from Lublin and the vicinity, and their allies, will participate.The partner – Galeria Labirynt - will provide premises and content-based and technical support. The partner’s employees will conduct training on combating discrimination and inclusive language.
Summary of project results
The project responds to the problem of discrimination against LGBT+ people in the Lublin region. The LGBT+ community experiences hate speech, hate crimes, violence and discrimination. A few years ago, the Lublin Voivodship Sejmik and about 25 local authorities across the voivodship adopted a homophobic resolution ''Self-government free of LGBT ideology'' and the Mayor of Lublin banned the Equality March twice. During the first march, LGBT+ people were attacked with fireworks, stones and physical violence. During the second march, an attempt was made to detonate an explosive device. Sadly, political acquiescence may have influenced the escalation of violence at both events. There is a lack of welcoming, open and safe spaces in the city and the region as a whole. School or home is often not such a place for LGBT+ people. For a long time there was only one institution in Lublin that openly supported non-heteronormative people.
The project created a friendly, open and accessible space for young LGBT+ people from Lublin and the surrounding area - the basement of the Labyrinth. The partner, the Labyrinth Gallery, provided the space as well as content and technical support. The venue was (and still is) a space for development, integration and support. The programme of the Basement was a response to the needs of young people. It consisted mainly of group-integrating events: film or chess evenings, creative workshops, educational lectures and meetings around a common table. The events focused mainly on issues related to inclusive language, psychology, creative expression or sex education. During the project, 35 workshops, four training sessions and 90 inclusive meetings were held. From the beginning, the Basement hosted a support group for LGBTQ+ people, which was very popular throughout the project. In addition to psychological counselling, legal counselling was also provided. Due to the outbreak of war in Ukraine, the Basement of the Labyrinth also operated as a day care centre for refugee children and young people.
Thanks to the project, LGBT+ youth in Lublin have a safe place to go. Undoubtedly, the project has influenced the sense of safety, acceptance and understanding, as well as the integration and increased visibility of the LGBT+ community in Lublin. Young people also received direct support. Twenty-two people benefited from the support group, 12 from psychological counselling and 14 from legal counselling. To this day, the Basement of the Labyrinth remains a space frequented by young people, with over 300 young people aged 14-30 having participated in its activities.