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Saturday's march wound through the center of Budapest and crossed the Danube River on one of the iconic structures connecting the city's two halves: Liberty Bridge. People march across the Szabadsag, or Freedom Bridge, over the River Danube during a gay pride parade in Budapest, Hungary, July 24, 2021. The Executive Commission of the 27-nation bloc launched two separate legal proceedings against Hungary's government last week over what it called infringements on LGBT rights. Many politicians in the European Union, of which Hungary is a member, fiercely opposed the legislation. But critics of the legislation compare it to Russia's gay propaganda law of 2013, and say it conflates homosexuality with pedophilia as part of a campaign ploy to mobilize conservative voters ahead of elections next spring.
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Hungary's government says its policies seek to protect children. The measures were attached to a bill allowing tougher penalties for pedophiles. The march came after a controversial law passed by Hungary's parliament in June prohibited the display of content to minors that depicts homosexuality or gender change. "A lot of LGBTQ people are afraid and don't feel like they have a place or a future in this country anymore," Majercsik told The Associated Press. March organizers expected record crowds at the event and called on participants to express their opposition to recent steps by populist Prime Minister Viktor Orban's government that critics say stigmatize sexual minorities in the Central European country.īudapest Pride spokesperson Jojo Majercsik said this year's march is not just a celebration and remembrance of the historical struggles of the LGBT movement but a protest against Orban's current policies targeting gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer people. Rising anger over the policies of Hungary's right-wing government prompted thousands to fill the streets of the country's capital Saturday to march in support of LGBT rights in the annual Budapest Pride parade.