Amid missile strikes, being queer in Ukraine is defiance against Putin

As missiles rained down on Kramatorsk last night, killing nine people, including three children, and wounding at least 56 more (see more below), Kyiv did one of the things that Russian President Vladimir Putin hates the most: it celebrated the diversity of its LGBTQ+ community with the Sunny Bunny Film Festival, Ukraine’s first film festival dedicated to queer filmmaking.

Russia has elevated homophobia to state policy and even used the existence of people like Monro, 45, to justify its invasion. Russia has partly framed the war as a defense of “traditional values” from Western policies that “are directly leading to degradation and degeneration, because they are contrary to human nature.”

Meanwhile, Ukraine is debating a bill that would recognize civil partnerships, a step on the road to legalizing marriage between two people, regardless of their gender identity. Ukraine’s parliament also unanimously passed a bill on Dec. 15, 2022, banning hate speech against LGBTQ+ individuals in the country’s media.

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