• Hungary however sued by the European Commission earlier this month.
• A rule passed last year limits what schools can teach about homosexuality and transgender.
• This is the latest anti-LGBTQ bill imposed by Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s government.

On Saturday, hundreds of Hungarians marched in the annual Budapest Pride march despite the heat. They committed to maintaining battling against the government’s LGBTQ policies, which however criticized by the EU.

Hungary however sued by the European Commission earlier this month. A rule passed last year limits what schools can teach about homosexuality and transgender issues.

This however the latest anti-LGBTQ bill imposed by Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s government.

In the Budapest Pride march, human rights groups felt it was discriminatory against LGBTQ people. The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, termed it a “disgrace.”

“I am queer myself, and it’s crucial that we exhibit ourselves, especially in a country where the political attitude toward LGBTQ people is like this,” said one Pride participant as throngs marched through the capital with rainbow flags and umbrellas in 40-degree Celsius heat (104 Fahrenheit).

Orban has been in power since 2010. He got there in part because he took a strong line on immigration and advocated for social measures that he argues safeguard traditional Christian values against liberal ideas from the West.

In a speech he gave earlier Saturday in Romania, Orban said Hungary’s main challenges were the war in Ukraine, economic problems, population, migration, and gender politics.

Before Saturday’s march, dozens of embassies with offices in Budapest issued a unified statement in support of the LGBTQ community.

In a statement, the U.S. Embassy said, “We firmly support the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (LGBTQI+) persons to equality and non-discrimination, freedom of expression, and peaceful assembly.”