Hungary’s Anti-LGBTQ+ Law Breaches EU Law

EU Adviser Slams Hungary’s Anti-LGBTQ+ Law as “Unconstitutional Attack on Equality

By: Paul Goldberg, Senior Editor | JRL CHARTS – LGBT Politics Europe

BRUSSELS — (June 11, 2025) — In a scathing legal rebuke, a top adviser to the European Union’s highest court declared that Hungary’s 2021 anti-LGBTQ+ law directly violates EU law and undermines fundamental democratic principles. The opinion, issued Thursday by Advocate General Tamara Ćapeta, charges that Hungary’s restrictive measures — which ban the representation or “promotion” of LGBTQ+ lives in media accessible to children — are rooted in a discriminatory worldview.

In her sharply worded statement, Ćapeta said Budapest’s draconian rules “significantly deviate from the model of a constitutional democracy” by promoting the false notion that LGBTQ+ identities are less worthy or valuable than heterosexual and cisgender lives. The ruling, though nonbinding, is a powerful indicator of how the European Court of Justice (ECJ) is likely to rule in the coming months.

The opinion intensifies the European Commission’s ongoing clash with Viktor Orbán’s government, which has ramped up its anti-LGBTQ+ crusade by banning Pride events and authorizing police to use biometric surveillance technology — including real-time facial recognition — to identify Pride organizers and attendees.

The European Commission first launched infringement proceedings against Hungary in 2021 after the adoption of the controversial law. The legislation bars children from seeing any LGBTQ+ content on TV, in advertisements, or in books. Same-sex couples and trans people are banned from appearing on daytime TV, and LGBTQ+-themed books must be sealed and kept away from schools and churches.

Budapest has justified the crackdown by invoking the EU’s audiovisual media rulebook on child protection, claiming it’s shielding minors from “harmful content.” However, Advocate General Ćapeta forcefully rejected this justification, calling it a direct affront to the principle of equality enshrined in EU law.

Hungary’s Culture Minister Balázs Hankó lashed out in response, calling the opinion an attempt to let “sexual propaganda take precedence over child protection.” He pledged that Hungary would continue to “fight for our children and families — no matter how many countries join Brussels’ attack.”

As the European Court of Justice prepares its final ruling in the coming months, all eyes are on whether the EU’s top judges will uphold Ćapeta’s blistering assessment and force Hungary to scrap the law that has drawn global condemnation.

The European Commission did not respond to JRL CHARTS LGBT Politics Europe’s request for comment by post time. Should they issue a statement, we will bring it to you.

Stay with JRL CHARTS LGBT Politics Europe for breaking updates as the EU’s top court prepares its final ruling on Hungary’s controversial anti-LGBTQ+ law.