madam president can i say as a gay man i am proud that this house and others are speaking out against this proposed law
this proposed law will clearly breach eu treaties on human rights particularly article six as well as the employment framework directive and general policies on non-discrimination
it also interestingly breaches the un convention on the rights of the child in that it encourages discrimination against young lesbians and gay people
so whom does it protect and from what
the british conservatives introduced in great britain a similar law in nineteen eighty-eight
it was recognised then and recognised now that these laws lead to censorship and the promotion of discrimination and homophobia discrimination and homophobia which destroys people's lives and blights the souls of those who practise it
the proposed law has been condemned by ngos including the international lesbian and gay association the council of europe and amnesty international as well as others
it affects young lesbians and gay men teachers public officials and could be used to prevent young people having access to any material films books plays works of art created by a gay man or a lesbian
are they going to try and stop young people studying the works of plato shakespeare oscar wilde walt whitman tennessee williams tchaikovsky and others the music of elton john or idolising tennis greats such as martina navratilova
it will affect the very way young people and others speak think and act
and why
young people need education not isolation they need to understand the world in all its diversity and be taught respect for those who are different
the love of one human being for another is never lessened by gender or sexuality it is love
lesbians and gay men are ordinary men and women made extraordinary by extremists preoccupation with our sex lives and the defamation that lesbians and gay men are a threat to society
that is a vile misrepresentation
any civilised society is judged not by how it treats its majority but how it treats its minorities
so i say to lithuanians and people across europe reject this dangerous step back to the past
