Belgium to celebrate Pride in August and join the global virtual event
In Belgium, the celebration of Gay Pride Day has been postponed until August 29 due to the pandemic, but the organizers urge today to join the virtual event "Global Pride 2020" launched internationally by the LGBTI + community to call for diversity and equality.
The Pride Festival celebrations, which bring together more than 100,000 people each year in Brussels, were scheduled for May 23, but due to the impossibility of guaranteeing security for the more than 80 groups participating due to the coronavirus, it was decided to March its postponement.
"This year, the Belgian Pride Festival will be dedicated to mental and physical health. We are already launching the reorganization in order to be able to welcome everyone for a full edition in August," the association The Belgian said in a statement. Pride, who co-organizes the event along with other LGBTI + groups (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual and intersex).
The 2020 edition focuses on promoting and making visible the issues related to the health and well-being of LBTI people, not only physical, but psychological and social.
"We want to draw attention to the many challenges that have to be addressed, such as HIV prevention and accessibility to health services for transgender people," say the organizers.
They recall that in the last 40 years, the acceptance and rights of LGBTI people have "considerably improved" in Belgium, but their well-being has not followed this trend.
"Mental health does not seem to improve. Several studies show that LGBTI people always have a much higher risk of mental health problems and a much higher risk of suicide thoughts and attempts," they say.
As they prepare to address these issues in different seminars before the Festival takes place in August, they urge you to follow today through their website the global event on the occasion of World Pride Day, which will be broadcast live for 24 hours and will feature with the participation of various artists and activists from around the world.
Among them will be the singer Lola McQueen from Antwerp (northern Belgium), "drag queen" who, despite being deaf from birth, has become known for her performances in the television contest "Belgium's Got Talent".
