Ukraine's Fight For LGBT Rights: Odesa Pride 2016

What You Need To Know:

✓At first, a court banned the pride so activists changed the route. The pride was held on August 13th and had about 50 participants.
✓Police and activists met at the last moment to agree upon a security question;
✓Provocation took place: radicalized people who introduced themselves as the organization “Sokil” tried to break through police to demonstrators.

LGBT rights activists in Ukraine organized a march for equality in Odesa on August 13th, 2016. According to the coordinator of Freedom House in Ukraine Zorian Kis, local authorities appealed to the court which banned the pride. The original route and time were banned. The organizers then changed the route.

Policemen and activists met a day before the pride. About 200 police officers were protecting campaigners.
Demonstrators took a walk from Primorskii boulevard to the Dums’ka Square. They chanted: “Human rights are above all!”, “Love is above all”, but the main slogan was “Odesa Pride is for a free city!”

Although the pride was a peaceful demonstration, members of a radical group “Sokil” tried to make provocations, but police prevented it. Four people were detained.