Problem with Gays

Events have the significance that a society assigns to them. Politicians play a crucial role in this: They have the means and opportunities to influence the public's awareness of problems.

What happens when an asylum seeker does something is well-known: There is a press conference or at least a statement addressing it and demanding harsh consequences. It is all the more remarkable that it has remained so quiet when security authorities have uncovered what seems to be organized "hate crime": 18 people have been arrested in this country. They are alleged to have lured predominantly homosexual men to remote locations and then humiliated and abused them there.

Interior Minister Gerhard Karner (ÖVP) and representatives of almost all parties have condemned this. At most, it was a perfunctory exercise. Nothing came from the Freedom Party. This is very telling.

To avoid being misunderstood: Before the law, everyone should be equal. Whether asylum seeker or non-asylum seeker. Police, prosecutors, and the judiciary should act to the best of their knowledge and belief based on existing regulations. No political prompts are needed for this. On the contrary, in this context, they are rather dispensable. We do not have political justice.

However, it is about moods in society: In Austria, it is not normal or self-evident for comparatively many people that there are homosexuals who stand by it. This is suggested by the results of a Eurobarometer survey: Only 66 percent find that there is "nothing wrong" with a relationship between two people of the same sex. In Germany and France, over 80 percent do, and in the Netherlands and Sweden, over 90 percent.

No wonder: In Austria, for example, it took longer for marriage for all to be introduced; and that only because it was necessary due to a decision by the Constitutional Court. The ÖVP, which considers itself a party of the center, only agreed to it late. The FPÖ even criticized the introduction on January 1, 2019: "Unequal is treated equally," railed their then Secretary General Herbert Kickl in a statement against the "homo marriage."

The FPÖ is free to propagate its ideal visions regarding life plans. However, it crosses a line when it acts against the LGBTQ+ movement. When it calls for a ban on transgender athletes. When it speaks out against a pride parade, as it did last year in St. Pölten. Or when the Upper Austrian party leader Manfred Haimbuchner suggests that these people "do nothing": This fuels sentiments that can become dangerous.

While it cannot and should not be held directly responsible for what individuals derive from this and then do, it would be its responsibility to make clear what is not tolerated and to condemn "hate crimes" as clearly as it does other violent crimes. It would be an important signal.

Johannes Huber runs the blog dieSubstanz.at – Analyses and Backgrounds on Politics

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.