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THE EMBASSY CONGRATULATES LESBIAN MEDALWINNERS FROM WORLD OUTGAMES

Clear signals from the Danish ambassador about the need for acceptance of gay rights in the Latvian society, at the celebration of the Latvian bronze medal winners at World Outgames. The international sports’ event primarily for gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transsexuals took place in Copenhagen earlier this year.

A proud basketball team with their bronze medals around their neck celebrated their results at the World Outgame at a reception held at the embassy. Ambassador Uffe Wolffhechel congratulated the entire women’s team, but also underlined their success could contribute to a higher level of acceptance for homosexuality in the Latvian society.

- We would like to send out a signal that gays, lesbians, bi and transsexuals are normal people like everyone else. Through the team’s achievement we are, in unity, able to show, that homosexuals have the same interests and potentials as everybody else and that sexual minorities are equals in the ordinary life of a society, stated Uffe Wolffhechel.

Valued support
Together with the humanistic organization, Soros Foundation, and the Danish Cultural Institute in Latvia, the embassy gave economic support to the team. Without this support, the achievement would never have been a reality, since the team could not afford travel and accommodations costs in Denmark. - We are very grateful for the support from the embassy and without that contribution we would not have travelled, one of the bronze winners, Liga Klavina, said.

A step further
In the Soros Foundation there is a hope that the Latvian girls achievement can aid in a higher tolerance for homosexuals in Latvia and throughout Eastern Europe, where a large proportion of the population continues to show a lack of acceptance for people of different sexual orientation.

- It is a little but important step on the road to improve tolerance in the Latvian society. If we did not support these kind of activities, we would never reach our goals. The basketball team is helping humanize a group that up until now have been demonized, said the director of the Soros Foundation in Latvia, Andris Aukmanis.

We are ordinary people
The Latvian basketball girls themselves acknowledge that sport can act as an entry point in the acceptance of homosexuals. - Our achievement is about much more than sport alone, even though I wished that was not the case. What we have done is one of the ways to show, that homosexuals are not monsters, but ordinary people like everyone else, Evita Gosa from the bronze winning team points out.

Apparently this small step has had its effect. At the moment the homosexual sports’ environment in Riga is experiencing a large intake to its sporting activities. The signal from the Danish Embassy regarding tolerance was sent in all directions throughout Latvian society. The press was well represented at the reception, where journalists from radio, TV, newspapers and online news portals reported on the celebration of the basketball team.

Edited September 30, 2009