About Programs Fellowship News Calendar
Latest report from the Salzburg Global LGBT Forum now available to download, read and share
In recent years, much progress has been made to expand basic human rights for lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgender (LGBT) people and their communities. However, many barriers still stand in the way of full inclusion. LGBT individuals are often are excluded by their own families and prevented from starting their own because of legislative discrimination. LGBT refugees migrating to countries that recognize sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) laws continue to face discrimination in the diaspora communities, societies, and bureaucracies of these receiving countries. Furthermore, mental health, anti-LGBT violence, and LGBT-specific health care have historically lacked the societal and policy attention they demand.
In May 2017, the Salzburg Global LGBT* Forum brought together 56 human rights defenders, activists, artists, researchers, diplomats, politicians, entrepreneurs, philanthropists and journalists from 33 countries to explore these important, interconnected issues at the session Home: Safety, Wellness, and Belonging.
The recently published report from this session presents the discussions of the five-day long program, focusing on the core issues of family, LGBT migration and refugees, and wellbeing.
Through a series of panels and roundtable discussions held at the LGBT Forum, Fellows shared heart-wrenching and -warming stories, detailing both their personal or communities’ struggles and the strategies used to overcome familial and societal exclusion and legal discrimination.
Group work discussions and workshops enabled the Fellows to devise plans for apps and social media campaigns and produce short videos to help advance LGBT rights in their own communities, building on the insights shared across the five days.
The 2017 session also saw the premiere of the short film Family is…? A Global Conversation. The film was produced over three years with support from the German Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth. The initial premiere for the Fellows was held during the LGBT Forum to mark IDAHOT (the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia) on May 17, with a public premiere held in Berlin, Germany the day after the session in Salzburg concluded, on May 19.
In addition to the session report, interviews, features and videos from the session can be found online: www.salzburgglobal.org/go/578
*LGBT: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender. We are using this term as it is widely recognized in many parts of the world, but we would not wish it to be read as in any way exclusive of other cultures, groups or terms, either historical or contemporary.