Valentine’s Day is the perfect moment to celebrate that love is love.
Kate Feeney, rapporteur in the European Committee of the Regions on the LGBTIQ+ Equality Strategy says: “On this day we send all our wishes to our LGBTIQ+ friends who don’t have the same privileges (yet) that straight people have in their communities. Love knows no boundaries”.
Kate Feeney will also assist the work of the jury for the European Capitals of Inclusion and Diversity 2023 award, selected as the sole European Committee of the Regions representative based on her work as the CoR rapporteur on LGTBIQ+ rights
Over the past few years, our group and its local and regional representatives worked on a series of initiatives, including but not limited to:
– At the ALDE Party Congress, we called through our resolution on all Liberal Mayors across Europe to promote the right of all citizens of being themselves, living their lives as freely as any other citizen, to ensure a free society respecting the rights of minorities, building bridges not walls, and also to work with other Mayors of different political families in their countries to demonstrate the benefits of inclusiveness and embracing diversity.
– We committed to making the EU an LGBTIQ freedom zone in cooperation with the other political families in the European Committee of the Regions
Our President François Decoster said on that occasion: “The defense of LGBTIQ citizens to be themselves with full rights is a top priority for our group. More than ever, we embrace equality and diversity and we stand together in our support of freedom for LGBTIQ citizens across Europe.
– We delivered a letter signed by many members of our network to 30 Polish municipalities to work with them promoting diversity as a source of strength for local and regional communities, also working with the French Secretary of State for EU affairs ahead of his visit to Poland in 2021 to address that matter to call on the Polish municipalities to rescind their resolution targeting LGBTIQ+ citizens. During the Liberal Mayors Summit Mayors from across Europe also discussed how such resolutions can be replicated at the local level
– Our group and the European Liberal Forum, among others, joined forces in the LGBTI Freedom Zones in Practice Conference, focusing on urgent issues regarding LGBTIQ rights in Europe in early 2022.
– Kate Feeney highlighted the issue of rainbow families in cross-border movement within the EU during a webinar with Renew Europe MEPs as part of the Renew4Equality working programme.