Hungary passes law banning LGBT content in schools or kids’ TV - The Guardian

Hungary’s parliament has passed a law banning gay people from featuring in school educational materials or TV shows for under-18s, as Viktor Orbán’s ruling party intensified its campaign against LGBT rights.

The national assembly passed the legislation by 157 votes to one, after MPs in the ruling Fidesz party ignored a last-minute plea by one of Europe’s leading human rights officials to abandon the plan as “an affront against the rights and identities of LGBTI persons”.

The Hungarian legislation outlaws sharing information with under-18s that the government considers to be promoting homosexuality or gender change.

“The law is incompatible with the fundamental values of European democratic societies as well as the values of the Hungarian citizens and is only the latest of many shameful attacks on LGBTIQ rights by Viktor Orbán’s government,” she said.

While Viktor Orbán’s government has targeted migrants in its political messaging, gay rights have come under increasing pressure ahead of parliamentary elections in 2022.

On the eve of Tuesday’s vote, the Council of Europe’s commissioner for human rights, Dunja Mijatović, described the legislation as an “affront against the rights and identities of LGBTI persons” that curtailed freedom of expression and education of all Hungarians