The annual focus on Pride parades makes queerness a geopolitical issue. And that does not help Georgia’s LGBTQ community, which faces violence and economic marginalization.
Political movements based on Shia Islam have faced an uphill battle, as both the government and mainstream opposition are devoted to a secular, pro-Turkic national narrative.
While the event was only a press briefing, organizers still celebrated it as a “step forward” even as they enumerated the many recent hate crimes the community has suffered.