News

Luxembourg’s Gay Prime Minister Makes Historic UN Speech

By DNA Online Editor

Posted on September 27, 2019

Shutterstock

Xavier Bettel, Luxembourg’s gay prime minister has reportedly made the first speech by an openly gay leader on LGBTIQ rights at the United Nations.

Reuters reported Bettel called on world leaders to prevent freedom of expression from causing harm.

“We are all part [of it] and we all have a responsibility,” he said. “This starts from… your politicians but it goes also to a family evening, to dinner with friends, with family. If they have hate speech you can never accept it,” Bettel said.

View this post on Instagram

Dës Woch sinn ech zu New York vir d’UN Vollversammlung. D’Woch huet ugefaangen e Méinde mam Climate Action Summit. An menger Ried hunn ech drop hi gewisen dat Lëtzebuerg sech als Zil gesat huet, fir d'Emissioune bis 2030 ëm 50 bis 55 Prozent erofzesetzen. Mä dat eleng geet net duer. Dofir wäert Lëtzebuerg méi investéieren, fir manner developpéiert Länner dobäi z'ënnerstëtzen, fir kënne géint de Klimawandel virzegoen. Et ass virun allem wichteg dat Verspriechen, déi mer de Jonke ginn, net eidel bleiwen. A menger Ried haut an der Assemblée Générale vun der Uno sinn ech dunn och op d’Situatioun vun de Mënscherechter agaangen, déi sech leider op ville Platzen an der Welt ze verschlëmmere schéngt. Hu mir dann näischt vum Horror aus dem 2. Weltkrich geleiert? Et kann net sinn datt esou Iddien an Ideologien nees opkommen. D’UNO ass eng wichteg Institutioun well mir hei zesummen d'Zukunft kënne gestalten. Mee dofir musse mir ophalen, iwwerteneen ze schwätzen an ufänken, mateneen ze diskutéieren. En anere wichtege Rendezvous hat ech gëschter Owend, an zwar mat de Lëtzebuerger déi hei zu New York liewen. Et ass all Joer eng Freed vir mech kenne mat hinnen auszetauschen. #unitednations #unga2019 #unga74

A post shared by Xavier Bettel (@xavier.bettel) on Sep 26, 2019 at 3:59pm PDT

Later in the speech Bettel said, “Being gay is not a choice but not accepting it is a choice. Homophobia is a choice and we have to fight against it.”

Bettel is one of three openly gay world leaders and has been prime minister of Luxembourg since 2013.

This is not the first time Bettel has spoken out in favour of LGBTIQ rights. In February this year, he reportedly stunned Arab leaders into silence when he pointed out that he could be legally killed in some of their nations. The speech was met with “icy silence by some, quiet joy by others” according to German journalist Stefan Leifert.