at around 7pm yesterday, october 12th, a gunman killed two men in or in front of tepláreň, one of the few lgbt establishments in bratislava, the capital of slovakia.
the shooter was the nineteen-year-old son of a former candidate for an extreme far right political party. he used his father’s gun, and before the shooting, he published a 65-page, antisemitic, anti-LGBT manifesto, in which he claimed to be inspired by the shootings in christchurch and buffalo. he was found dead this morning.
the police, of course, are ~investigating~ the motive, but those who are free to speak - this including the president - are fortunately calling this exactly what it is: a hate crime. the media coverage is abundant, because shootings are very rare in slovakia; some are calling it a breaking point which will finally reveal whether this country is capable of compassion toward lgbt people, and of recognizing that the extremist rhetoric that has been infiltrating our politics for over a decade directly leads to death and suffering.
there isn’t much for the international community to do, but i’m posting about this because the shooter’s name and face are all over the articles coming out this morning, granting him and his message the kind of visibility he probably would have wanted.
i’m posting about it because my heart hurts thinking about the bravery it takes to just exist as yourself, in this country and others, and about any safety we might feel being so very easily ripped away. i’m posting about it because i said two days ago that i cover my rainbow patch whenever i get on the train, just in case; because i take two t-shirts when i go to pride and change into anything with rainbows on it once i’m there; because the official guidance from pride events is still to remove anything that could identify you as attending, for your own safety - but none of that is enough, because we can’t take off who we are, and these people don’t just want us quiet, and legally subjugated, and out of sight. they want us dead. this is my home country, and every day i’m reminded of why it’s impossible for it to feel quite like home for someone like me.
the victims went out for a drink on a wednesday night to a place where they felt safe to be themselves, a place that only exists because of this community’s unflinching commitment to persevering. their names were Matúš and Juraj, and first and foremost, i’m posting this so more people can know them, and not the person who took their lives.
think of them today, if you have the room. 🏳️🌈🇸🇰
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