Portugal IDAHO Report 2013

A diverse range of events marked the Day’s commemorations in three different cities in Portugal – Lisbon, Porto and Coimbra. Actions included a march against homophobia & transphobia in Coimbra, a queer performance festival in Porto and Lisbon, Guerilla rainbow street art in Lisbon, a free hugs event and a one day conference bringing together LGBT young people, activists, academics and policy-makers in Lisbon. The Day was also marked, surprisingly, by the passing of a bill extending adoption rights to same sex couples by the Portuguese Parliament.

May 17 March in Coimbra

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Poster for the Coimbra May 17 March. Source.
In Coimbra, activists organised the 4th edition of the ‘March against Bifobia, Intersexofobia, Homofobia, Lesbofobia, Polifobia and Transfobia of Coimbra’, on the afternoon of Friday May 17. They met at Jardins do Convento da Santa Clara, began the march at Av. Joao das Regras and ended at Praca 8 de Maio. For more info please see the event website: http://marchadecoimbra.blogspot.pt/
Participants created and shared this photo album online. Below are some highlights, with credits to the site, Portugal Gay.pt:

One Day Conference Held in Lisbon

The conference ‘Nem Menos, Nem Mais: Direitos Iguais’ (No More, No Less: Equal Rights’), was organised by Rede Ex Aequo, on Friday May 17 from 9:00 – 14.30. It was focussed in particular on young LGBT people. Themes addressed included homophobic and transphobic bullying, adoption, family and LGBT parenting. Speakers included the President of the National Youth Council, Ivo Santos, and a representative of the State Commission for Citizenship and Gender Equality.
Poster for the conference. Source.
For more information on the conference, and the full programme, see the facebook event page.

Lisbon Free Hugs Event

May 17 – Free Hugs event – Activists from LGBTQI group Rede Ex Aequo advised in the lead-up to the event: ‘We are organizing another initiative called FREE HUGS, where are are going to hug passersby on the 17th of May during an hour while offering some materials to sensitize people towards LGBT issues and also offer small gifts like pens and anti-stress balls.’ For more details please see the facebook event page.

Guerilla Art Actions in Lisbon, by GATA (Group for Activism and Transformation through Art)

Activists linked to GATA took the streets of Lisbon in style on May 17th, queering different parts of the city through art, and getting the word out about the Day in general ! Here are some highlights which were shared on facebook:
(& For more info + photos please see the GATA facebook event page for May 17, or GATA on facebook !)

 

 

Queer Performance Art from Loose Holes – Porto and Lisbon

“Loose Holes: Portuguese Festival of Queer Performance” ran from May 16 – 19, across Porto and Lisbon, featuring creative performances from a range of queer artists from Portugal and internationally. A slide show of different highlights can be seen here:
http://www.flickr.com//photos/looseholesfest/sets/72157634066555398/show/with/9015998962/
 
Log onto the Loose Holes site for more info, and the full programme.
Portuguese Parliament approves Bill on Same Sex Adoption
On May 17, 2013, Portugal also became the 5th country in the world (after Austria, Finland, Germany and Israel) to extend full co-parenting rights to same sex couples. The vote was won on just 5 votes – 99 for, 94 against, and 9 abstentions. The bill will now pass to the president for approval.