Ukraine Nationalists Force Cancellation of Kyiv Queer Talk

Right Wing Nationalists Force Cancellation of ‘Kyiv Queer Talk’ Event

LAS VEGAS, NV — (12-09-24) — Ukrainian right-wing nationalists clashed with police over the weekend at the ‘Kyiv Queer Talk’ event. The incident took place outside the Office Repair Together meeting space in downtown Kiev, where the ‘KyivPride’ activist group – an organization dedicated to advocating for LGBTQ rights in Ukraine, was scheduled to the lecture that was suppose to be dedicated to the history of queerness and homophobia in Ukraine.

According to videos posted on social media, while guests were arriving for the ‘Kyiv Queer Talk’ lecture, two dozen right-wing nationalists men waving Ukrainian flags and the red-black banners of the Ukrainian nationalist movement, stormed the location in an attempt at disrupting the LGBTQ lecture that was scheduled to take place.

🇺🇦Young nationalists disrupted an LGBT🏳️‍🌈 event in #Kyiv.

On December 8, the #KyivPride organization, which lobbies for the interests of foreign countries in Ukraine, planned to hold presentations of LGBT books at Ivan Franko 12. The so-called “Drag Queens” were also invited to… pic.twitter.com/yzx8qSQ433

— ✝ ⚔️ Hunter UA ✠ 🇺🇸🇺🇦 (@UaCoins) December 8, 2024

The right-wing nationalists clashed with police who were patrolling the area, and threw smoke grenades at officers, according to witnesses’ accounts.

KyivPride posted on its Telegram and Instagram platforms that the ‘Kyiv Queer Talk’ lecture had been cancelled, advising those who planned to attend not to arrive at the scene for their own safety. The group quickly condemned the actions of the attackers as “illegal” and “anti-Ukrainian.”

The Kiev police communications department confirmed the incident in a press statement and said that officers were able to contain the violence and disperse the attackers. However they didn’t say if any arrests were made.

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