Motto & Demands 2023
Motto
CSD Berlin | Berlin Pride 2023
The democratic forum of the Berlin CSD e.V. has decided on the motto of this year’s Berlin Pride | Berlin CSD on July 22, 2023. With an expected number of participants of about 500,000 people, the Berlin CSD 2023 moves under the following motto through the not yet final route of the Berlin city center:
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The forum and the board of the Berlin CSD e.V. would like to note here that it is important that we not only have to draw attention to external but also internal conflict potentials. Sexualities, identities and ways of life that belong or do not belong to our LGBTIQA* minority should be considered in a plural society without exceptions and their autonomy accepted as well as supported. Whether queer people who are victims of the war against the Ukrainian population, queer people during the Iran revolution or in the smallest circle in our city of Berlin, where between overrepresented and hardly noticeable (visible) people of our community, there is often a lack of empathy and solidarity. We must finally once again become that rainbow city of which everyone speaks so fondly – as a community – and through more support from politics. Their words must be fundamentally followed by more action.
Minorities must not be played off against each other. More solidarity and empathy is needed to build and consolidate a plural society and to defend this democratic pillar.
We ask you to use the graphic (image) in its form and not to change it, because the motto graphic went through a test for readability for people with visual impairments and/or disabilities.
The motto of the Berlin Pride is created in the CSD Forum together with every year’s demands.

DEMANDS 2022:
Topic: Hatecrime & Hatespeech
against queer people
• In order to reduce violence against queer people, we demand from the Berlin Senator for Justice, Diversity and Anti-Discrimination, Prof. Dr. Lena Kreck, fast & complete investigation of all crimes against LGBTQIA* people and a zero-tolerance policy of all forms of discrimination.
• In order to provide employees of Berlin authorities with possible assessment and decision-making bases on central topics such as “Hatecrime & Hatespeech against queer people”, we call on Anne von Knoblauch and Michael Späth from the Central Office for Prevention at the State Office of Criminal Investigation, as well as the management of all Berlin authorities, to regularly conduct appropriate, mandatory trainings. TO DO: bring “mandatory training” more into the center of the discussion.
• To take away the fears of LGBTQIA* victims, that have experienced hate and violence, we call on Police Commissioner Barbara Slowik and Senator of the Interior Spranger to establish police contact points and conciliation offices for LGBTQIA* people in all twelve Berlin districts, which can specifically deal with these issues.
• We demand that people are not spat on in the street.
Topic: Education and information
• We call on Senator for Education, Youth and Family, Astrid-Sabine Busse, to implement norm-critical gender, body and sexuality education at all educational institutions by 2025 and to adapt the corresponding regulations accordingly.
• We call on the German publishing houses Ernst Klett Verlag GmbH, Cornelsen Verlag GmbH and Westermann GmbH & Co. KG to consider and reflect rainbow families and diversity in teaching materials.
• We call on Senator for Education, Youth and Family, Astrid-Sabine Busse, to offer regular, mandatory trainings for all Berlin teaching staff, as well as to enforce inclusion of gender and sexual diversity in the curriculum in a way that is also appropriate in practice.
Topic: Work and diversity
• Medium-sized companies and businesses must be supported in reducing homo-, bi-, trans-, inter- and queer hostility as well as discrimination in the work place. For a better integration, they need corporate cultural concepts. Therefore, we call on the Berlin Chamber of Industry and Commerce with its President Daniel-Jan Girl to develop a corresponding guideline, that will be carried into the companies and businesses, and to create a contact point for companies.
• We call on German business and trade associations, and specifically the Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce with President Peter Adrian, to develop a campaign to promote LGBTQIA* in the workplace. This should naturally promote awareness of diversity lived, strengthen LGBTQIA* talent and motivate them to act as role models for a clearer visibility of queer people in the world of work. TO-DO: identify other Berlin recipients for this demand
• We call on the Berlin Senate, represented by the Governing Mayor, Franziska Giffey, and the district offices to ensure, as part of the implementation of the Diversity State Program and the district strategies for an inclusive workplace culture, that employees in the administrations are guided and motivated to build LGBTQIA* employee networks that stand for more queer visibility, as known from the free economy.
TIN
• We demand more education, information and educational offers in the area of TIN / gender identity. This includes schools – but not only.
• We demand visibility for LGBTQIA* people from all cultural backgrounds in all public campaigns from Berlin politics and administrative organzinations.
• We call on the federal government to ensure gender self-determination for trans*, inter* and non-binary persons.
• We demand that the discriminatory TSG be replaced by a self-determination law. The change of first name and personal status should be made possible upon application to the registry office – without the need for expert opinions, medical certificates or court proceedings.
• We demand a ban on disclosure of changes in first names and personal status at the registry office.
• We demand that first names no longer have to be gender-assigning.
• We demand that gender no longer has to be determined at birth.
Inter*
Self-determination:
• We demand a legal ban and an immediate stop to gender reassignment surgeries without the consent of the person concerned.
• We demand that the federal government create a central registry and comprehensive reporting and documentation obligations for gender reassignment surgery. This must only be made accessible to those affected in order to be able to retrace operations retrospectively.
• We demand that the statute of limitations for prosecution be significantly extended and that circumvention abroad be prohibited by law.
• Education: We demand more awareness through further education and training for medical staff to weigh the necessity of operations. This should be supported by advocacy groups.
• Contact points: We call for the creation of specialized centers to educate the majority of the society.
• Acknowledgement and reappraisal: We demand an apology and reappraisal by the politicians and the perpetrators for the injustice committed in the form of gender-assignment surgery (admission of guilt).
Non-binary
• Education: We call for people to be made aware of how to handle personal data through mandatory training for employees.
• Acceptance: We demand the use of gender-neutral addresses in correspondence by authorities and public institutions.
• Recognition: We demand the complete legal recognition of more than two genders and the abolition of additional gender-dependent barriers.
Trans*
• We demand a regulation on full cost coverage by health insurers for trans persons. This must include all measures requested by the person.
• We demand the creation of a simplified access to cosmetic treatments, psychological care and health-promoting measures as well as the change of documents and all other supporting measures in the transition process.
• We demand no pathologisation of being trans*: prevention instead of diagnosis.
• Respect: The dignity of the human being is inviolable. We demand to recognize that intimate issues are transgressive and hurtful.
• Respect of boundaries of personal self-determination: The identity of a person is not to be questioned.
Topic: FLINTA
• To increase the acceptance of FLINTA people, we demand an equal and diverse representation of FLINTA in the German media!
• To promote better education and visibility for FLINTA, we call on the Berlin Senate to conduct a stand-alone campaign on FLINTA people online as well as offline by 2023.
• In order to achieve a stronger growth of inclusion and mutual understanding, we demand FLINTA initiatives, associations, collectives and events to convene a regular meeting for respectful, appreciative and critical exchange with each other.
Topic: Rainbow families
• In order to achieve equality for all parents, we call on the Federal Ministry of Justice and the Federal Office for Consumer Protection and all other parties to initiate an immediate change and reform of the law of parentage: Maternity recognition analogous to paternity recognition! As well as an automatic co-motherhood for lesbian partnerships.
• In order to bring about a contemporary, social image of the family, we demand gender-neutral formulations of mother and father to “parent 1 and parent 2” so that trans* parents and “diverse” parents can also be correctly entered on their children’s birth certificates.
• Furthermore, we demand financial support from the Berlin state government and the LAGESO for assisted reproduction for married as well as unmarried queer couples. Currently, only heterosexual and same-sex female couples and married couples are financially supported. That is a discrimination of society in the self-proclaimed “rainbow capital” Berlin.
Topic: Generations
• To strengthen the social participation of older queer people, we demand more queer meeting places in Berlin, such as queer neighborhood centers. We also demand that the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women & Youth supports the creation of multi-generation houses for LGBTQIA* people throughout Germany.
Topic: Bi+ and non mono-sexual sexuality
• Within the framework of the planned amendment to §46 paragraph 2 StGB, a formulation must be found that correctly and inclusively covers all sexual and gender identities. The currently planned sole consideration of homosexuality would definitely lead to exclusion and the violation of equal treatment when implemented in practice. 3 September 2020
• Bi+ and non-mono-sexual people as well as asexual and non-binary people are particularly affected by unequal treatment in asylum applications and are often rejected in first and also second instance. The German interpretation of European law in relation to not clearly homosexual people breaks this in most cases. We demand that the law is to be applied as agreed throughout Europe. We call on the federal and state governments to implement the asylum law as well as relevant reasons for flight correctly, clearly and inclusively for all people in the community. Here we refer to the new migration and asylum package of the European Commission from September 23, 2020.
Topic: International solidarity
• City partnerships should generate social, economic and cultural exchange and thereby promote democracy. We demand that the Berlin Senate uses its city partnerships to take a publicly visible stand for LGBTQIA* rights in other countries.
• In order to take a clear stance against queer-hostile efforts, we call on the district office of Steglitz-Zehlendorf, the BVV as well as the new district mayor Maren Schellenberg to actively examine whether the Polish twin city of Poniatowa is willing to abandon the 2019 resolution on the “LGBT-free zone” or otherwise to freeze the partnership until the resolution is effectively and publicly revoked.
• In order to save the lives of many Afghans, we demand that the humanitarian admission program for Afghanistan promised in the coalition agreement be started immediately and that LGBTQIA* be explicitly considered as a highly vulnerable group.
• Solidarity must not know national borders, therefore we call on our queer community in Germany to support the engagement of Ukrainian queers actively and with all means, during as well as after the war.
• For lived solidarity and to support the people in a city maltreated by war, we call on the Governing Mayor of Berlin to develop the project partnership entered into in 2017 with the Ukrainian capital Kyiv into a full-fledged city partnership as soon as possible. We also support the exemplary commitment of the boroughs of Steglitz-Zehlendorf and Charlottenburg Wilmersdorf in favor of their partner municipalities Kharkiv and Kyiv-Petschersk, which are marked by the war, but at the same time we demand from the mayors Maren Schellenberg and Kristin Bauch a recognizable consideration of queer concerns in the partnership relations, for example through the inclusion of Ukrainian LGBTQIA* organizations such as Kyiv Pride and Kharkiv Pride.
• We call on Berlin’s Mayor Franziska Giffey to approach her counterpart in our twin city Windhoek (Namibia), Sade Ganawas. Move him to join you in actively campaigning for the abolition of the “COMMON LAW OFFENCES OF SODOMY AND UNNATURAL SEXUAL OFFENCES” law that criminalizes male homosexuals.
• LGBTQIA* lives are threatened by criminal provisions or other persecutions. We demand from the BAMF – Federal Office for Migration and Refugees, the revision of the list of safe countries of origin. There must be no deportation to persecutor countries. LGBTQIA* asylum applications must not be rejected on the grounds that the refugees could keep their sexual orientation or gender identity secret in their country of origin and thus protect themselves from persecution. Countries in which the freedom of self-determination for all people is not protected by the national legal system must not be declared “safe countries of origin”. Existing classifications must be lifted. Germany must become a safe haven. With Brunei, Iran, Yemen, Mauritania, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia, six countries provide for the death penalty for homosexual acts. In five others (Afghanistan, Pakistan, Qatar, Somalia and the United Arab Emirates), the death penalty could be imposed on homosexuals under certain conditions.
• We call on the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees to change the term “Flüchtlinge” in the name as well as the communication to the term “Geflüchtete”.
• For queer collectives, clubs and associations, transfer of information is an essential part of their queer political work. Therefore, we demand an annual update of a publicly accessible report from the Berlin Senate to show which measures have been taken from the “Law on the Reorganization of Participation in the State of Berlin” as well as the “Diversity State Program”. In addition, we demand a quarterly meeting to determine how far these have come or have found application and effect.
• In order to abolish the experiences of intersectionality and multiple discrimination of particularly vulnerable groups of the LGBTQIA* community, we call on the Berlin government under the leadership of Franziska Giffey to get in contact with the representatives of these communities, to recognize intersectionality and to promote its dismantling. Listening helps! We call for the creation and promotion of measures to dismantle the existing multiple discrimination, especially of LGBTQIA* people with migration history. In addition, more anti-discrimination and educational work should be made possible to prevent existing and future exclusions of groups of people.
World cup in November in Qatar
• Consistently stand up for human rights – also at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. In Qatar, the host country of the 2022 World Cup, the death penalty for queer people is a threat. In Qatar, there is disregard and restriction of human rights – not only of LGBTQIA*, but also of women and migrant workers. It would have been better to cancel the world cup in advance and thus also show the red card to FIFA, which is responsible for awarding the sports festival to Qatar. Politicians and civil society are now called upon to make the 2022 World Cup a celebration of universal human rights and against discrimination against queer people: Through peaceful protest and a clear political stance. Soccer is a global role model for young people. The choice of venues is appalling and often shows that the top priorities are money and power. These priorities have now led to countries being chosen as host cities where it is punishable to openly live out one’s personal identity and sexuality. In order to strengthen human rights, we call on the DFB to allocate its vote in the Executive Committee exclusively in the sense of human rights. We strongly condemn the hosting of the World Cup in Qatar and call on the participating officials to use their voice and visibility to send a signal against discrimination and the obvious disregard for human rights.
• We call on the German government to take a clear political stance against participating in the World Cup in Qatar. LGBTQIA* rights are human rights. Of course, these also include women’s rights, migrants’ rights and labor rights! Human rights must not be discussed.
Topic: Cultural communities
• The pandemic has increasingly shown that cultural communities are more affected, and also that the social part of a society suffers greatly when culture cannot take place. Culture in general should receive higher appreciation. We demand a fair and appreciative payment from the organizers of the city, which are measured by the income of the event. Queer culture and its artists need this support and a higher appreciation of society in general.
• The Ballroom scene is a highly political component of the LGBTQIA* community. Primarily BI*POC and trans people have a historical background in creating our current rights. Therefore, we demand that all parts of a plural society deal with this community and especially that the rules are followed and accepted when attending events of the Ballroom scene.
Topic: Constituion for all
• The people of the queer community should be protected in their whole range by article 3 GG! Therefore, we join the demand of the “Basic Law for All” initiative and demand the improvement and expansion of this constitutional law.
Topic: Faith and spirituality
• In order to counteract the persistent opinion of individual religions and faith institutions, we call on all institutions and religious representatives to make their faith and free sexual identity, gender, gender identity and gender-specific regulations compatible and to live and communicate this openly.
• Every person is free in his or her sexuality and belief. This foundation, protected by the constitution, must be strengthened. Therefore, we call on the social classes not to question this free choice in every human being.
• To follow the unprecedented example of the “Out in Church” movement, we join in calling for LGBTQIA* persons to be able to live and work openly in the church, without fear. LGBTQIA* persons must have non-discriminatory access to all fields of action and occupation in the church. The church employment law must be changed.
Health:
• In order to achieve absolute integration, we also call for a sensitization within our communities against any form of exclusion, stigmatization and discrimination towards all people who are disabled and people with chronic illnesses. The actors of queer institutions and queer spaces are called upon to actively work to improve the participation of people with physical and mental disabilities and to stand firmly against exclusion, discrimination and stigmatization. We call on all queer dating platforms to initiate regular and proactive campaigns against discrimination, stigmatization and striking exclusion. The platforms must become aware of their responsibility for the effects of their use on the mental health of users and punish violations more strongly.
• To improve the sexual health of LGBTQIA* people, we demand objective, appreciative counseling services from the BvDU e.V. (Professional Association of German Urologists) and from the DGGG e.V. (German Society for Gynecology and Obstetrics). Sexual health includes the use of testing services and counseling on sexually transmitted diseases – in Berlin as well as nationwide. The WHO has given the following definition: “Sexual health is inextricably linked to overall health, well-being and quality of life.
It is a state of physical, emotional, mental, and social well-being in relation to sexuality, not merely the absence of disease, dysfunction, or infirmity.”
• To ensure the urgently needed development of holistic medical, psychosocial and psychotherapeutic care for LGBTQIA*, we call on the Federal Ministry of Health, the medical universities, the German Medical Association and the state medical associations to ensure that queer realities are taken into account nationwide and that all actors in the health care system are sensitized accordingly.
• The current state on the federal level is insufficient and even Berlin offers less than ten groundbreaking lighthouse projects. We demand from the Senate of the self-proclaimed rainbow capital Berlin continuous (!) financial support for lighthouse projects (like Checkpoint Berlin) as essential infrastructures for the health well-being of LGBTQIA* people.
Topic: HIV/AIDS
The state of Berlin wants to end AIDS by 2030. Those who know their HIV status can treat a detected HIV infection at an early stage and thus prevent the outbreak of the AIDS stage of the disease. Unfortunately, too many people with HIV are still diagnosed too late, with corresponding late health consequences and psychological suffering. In addition, late diagnosis increases the likelihood that other people will become infected. To encourage and enable people to get tested for HIV regularly and early, and to reduce the late effects of AIDS, we call for the following measures:
1. Targeted prevention campaigns to compensate for the education deficit of Generation Z, which stands as a less sexually enlightened generation due to COVID-19-related classroom failures #sexeducation #safersex3.0
2. a target-group-specific testing campaign to make barrier-free testing options available to people who are particularly at risk. Health checkups and HIV medications prevent serious illnesses and the transmission of the virus. This knowledge significantly helps to reduce prejudices and fears towards people with HIV as well as to actively engage in prevention themselves. Untreated people without health insurance and medical cover in the event of illness often fall seriously ill.
1. We call for ongoing, nationwide distribution of knowledge about #protectionthroughtherapy, #TasP, and current treatment options from HIV
2. We call for the promotion of access to medicines for people without health insurance or papers and refugees from third countries without asylum status or the right to stay, such as is provided by BAH e.V. and other NGOs, or the promotion of non-profit organizations that ensure this.
3. We demand #PrEP: An education campaign for men who have sex with men to make this prevention option known! HIV-negative people can protect themselves from infection with pre-exposure prophylaxis. Knowledge of PrEP as a safer sex option also helps reduce HIV/AIDS stigma.
4. We demand simplified and expanded access to early detection screenings for sexually transmitted infections for all genders – even without symptoms! The existing lighthouse projects, Checkpoint Berlin and also the S.A.M Health Project of the German Aids Federation, home testing facilities should be strengthened and expanded accordingly – in Berlin as well as at the federal level.
5. We call for an expansion of access to treatment for all for post-exposure prophylaxis PEP beyond the current two Berlin clinics.
• Current research shows that HIV-positive people experience rejection and discrimination, especially in the areas of medical care, as well as in intimate relationships. This avoidable ongoing discrimination is intolerable and adversely affects the psychosocial health of people living with HIV. Patients in need of treatment are not infrequently subjected to special treatment in hospitals and medical practices by anxious and fearful staff, such as chart marking, inappropriate questions, wearing double gloves, etc. The outdated knowledge of many staff leads to inappropriate special treatment of HIV-positive patients, thus violating patient rights, all supposedly to protect staff. To ensure empathetic, responsive and appropriate medical care for people living with HIV, we demand:
1. Mandatory education on HIV and AIDS in nursing training and medical studies, as well as continuous education in nursing facilities and on the part of the medical associations
2. the continuation and support of projects and actors that empower HIV-positive people who have experienced discrimination #empowerment. HIV is now a treatable, chronic disease. No one should suffer disadvantages in their professional life due to an HIV infection. The hemotherapy guideline of the German Medical Association discriminates against gay and bisexual men compared to heterosexual men. It is a discriminatory anachronism and technically unfounded.
• We demand from the Senator for Justice, Diversity, and Antidiscrimination, Prof. Dr. Lena Kreck, and Ulrike Gote, Senator for Science, Health, Care, and Equality, the abolition of HIV-related recruitment tests as in the Berlin police or fire departments or in the health sector.
• We call on the German Medical Association to abandon this discrimination and to replace it with professionally justified criteria that do not relate to the sexual orientation of blood donors but to recognized risk factors.
Imprint: Berliner CSD e.V.
Fuggerstraße 7, 10777 Berlin