Α homophobic attack took place in the heart of Thessaloniki, Greece’s second-largest city, Saturday night. The incident began around 10:30 pm in the city’s central Aristotelous (Aristotle) Square when a group of people verbally harassed two 21-year-old non-binary –as they self-identify–individuals.
Fearing for their safety, the victims sought refuge in a nearby restaurant, where they went.
However, the attackers were not deterred. The group of people soon gathered outside the restaurant and continued the verbal harassment.
When the non-binary individuals eventually left the restaurant, the mob threw bottles at them. Fortunately, the victims were not physically injured by this outrageous assault.
Police rushed to the scene and detained a total of 25 suspects. After questioning, 21 of them were officially arrested, including 11 minors and 10 adults. Among those arrested, 12 were foreign nationals.
The case is now being handled by the Department for Combating Racist Violence. This is a specialized unit within the Thessaloniki Police Directorate.
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With a post on Facebook, the mayor of Thessaloniki, Stelios Angeloudis, condemned the attack. ”Tolerance is a sign of civility and democracy. In the colourful, inclusive Thessaloniki of respect for diversity, there is no place for racist attitudes,” the centre-left mayor noted.
Beyond homophobic attacks: LGBTQI rights in Greece
Over the past decade, Greece has made significant progress in advancing LGBTQI rights, although challenges remain, as last night’s incident in Thessaloniki shows.
In 2015, Greece passed a law allowing civil partnerships for same-sex couples, providing many of the same rights as marriage. This was a major step forward, as previously LGBTQI individuals lacked legal recognition and protections for their relationships.
Unfortunately, LGBTQI people continue to face some forms of discrimination and social stigma, particularly outside of major cities, where social norms are still predominantly very conservative.
Particularly trans individuals face transphobic attitudes quite often. Despite these ongoing issues, however, visibility and acceptance of the LGBTQI community has grown. Pride events are now held annually in Athens and Thessaloniki and LGBTQI organizations and activists are increasingly active in advocating for further rights and protections.
Greece recently approved same-sex marriage in historic vote
Greece approved in February a bill on same-sex marriage in a landmark reform promoted by the conservative government over the opposition of the country’s powerful Orthodox Church.
“The vote has passed: Greece is proud to become the 16th EU country to legislate marriage equality,” Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis had posted on X. “This is a milestone for human rights, reflecting today’s Greece — a progressive, and democratic country, passionately committed to European values,” he added.
Mitsotakis, who personally spearheaded the bill, had urged lawmakers to “boldly abolish a serious inequality” in Greek democracy that had rendered same-sex families “invisible”.
The reform would “significantly improve the lives of quite a few of our fellow citizens, without taking away anything from the lives of the many”, he added.
Prior to the vote, the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul), which heads Orthodox churches around the world, had expressed its opposition to the same-sex marriage bill.
“Marriage is the union of man and woman under Christ…and the church does not accept the cohabitation of its members in any form other than marriage,” the Ecumenical Patriarchate had said.
This came after a decision by the Holy Synod, the highest governing body of the Church of Greece, which strongly opposed marriage equality.
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