Budapest Mayor Faces Fine for Encouraging Participation in Pride parade
The parade took place in June, months after Hungary amended regulations to apply a restriction on exposing minors to LGBTQ-themed content to public gatherings. Gergely Karacsony, mayor since 2019, opposed the ban and urged supporters to attend.
District prosecutors filed charges, with the Prosecutor General’s office noting that Karacsony did not pursue legal avenues to challenge the ban, but instead issued video messages encouraging people to defy it. Authorities are seeking a fine without proceeding to a trial.
Karacsony said he was proud to go from suspect to accused, calling it the price of “standing up for our own and others’ freedom,” and reiterated his call to resist what he described as “a selfish, petty, and vile government.”
Ahead of the parade, Karacsony argued that it was a municipal event rather than a standard public assembly requiring police approval. Organizers reported record attendance at the rally.
Earlier this month, Karacsony received the Dutch Geuzenpenning award in recognition of his “courageous commitment to democratic values” and pro-LGBTQ advocacy.
The conservative government of Prime Minister Viktor Orban has repeatedly clashed with EU authorities over its traditional-values policies, which Brussels says infringe on minority rights. Budapest, meanwhile, claims that the “woke agenda” poses harm to society and must be resisted.
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