Culture

Hungary’s Anti-LGBTQ+ Laws Could Ban Kids From Films Like the Black Panther Sequel


 

Films depicting the LGBTQ+ community will be heavily restricted in Hungary under rating guidelines introduced in the wake of its new “propaganda” law.

On Wednesday, the Media Council of the National Media and Infocommunications Authority (NMHH) unveiled strict new rules restricting films in which queerness or trans issues are a “defining feature” to people over the age of 18. That delineation would place, for instance, the upcoming drag queen coming-of-age movie Everybody’s Talking About Jamie in the same category as recent R-rated horror releases like Malignant and Candyman.

“General gestures expressing tenderness, like a kiss on the cheeks, a hug, holding hands while walking, or a kiss cannot be considered problematic unless they are portrayed for their own sake or constitute a central element of the program,” state the new guidelines, as the news publication Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty was the first to report.

The MPHH claimed that the regulations on movies demonstrating the “virtues, uniqueness of benefits of homosexuality or change of gender” are intended to “protect” young children.

“The protection of minors does not mean that certain issues are a taboo,” the media regulator said in a statement posted to its website. “Rather, it assesses the entire context and message with regard to the age-appropriate intellectual and processing capabilities of minors.”

The MPHH did not cite specific examples of offending content, but according to Reuters, regulators suggested that the rules would apply to All About My Mother, Spanish queer filmmaker Pedro Almodovar’s 1999 masterpiece. Although the film does not depict same-sex intimacy, prominent characters include a transgender sex worker and a pregnant nun with HIV played by Penélope Cruz.

These policies are expected to go into effect immediately. Affected movies could include 2022 releases The Eyes of Tammy Faye, which depicts the titular televangelist’s groundbreaking 1985 interview with an HIV-positive pastor, and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, which is rumored to include a lesbian love story. Unverified reports suggest actress Michaela Coel (I May Destroy You) will play the warrior Aneka, who has a girlfriend in the original Marvel comic series.

Hungary has already begun restricting LGBTQ+ representation in other forms of media following the adoption of its controversial “propaganda” law, which was passed in June. The law applies to literature, advertisements, and television broadcasts, reportedly blocking shows like Modern Family and Friends from being broadcast in primetime.

Violators face draconian penalties. A Budapest bookstore was fined 250,000 forints (approximately $828) in July for selling a children’s book depicting same-sex families without a warning label.

The European Union (EU) has taken dramatic action to stop the enforcement of Hungary’s anti-LGBTQ+ laws, threatening a lawsuit against the country and the denial of billions in critical funding. Hungarian officials, however, do not appear to be backing down. Earlier this week, Justice Minister Judit Varga told EU officials that Hungary has a right to protect its “culture, national identity and the family values rooted in them.”

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who is facing a tough reelection campaign amid Hungary’s botched COVID-19 response, has insisted the “propaganda” law is not discriminatory. At a European Council summit in June, the embattled far-right leader said the codes are about “sexual education of children regardless of its content.”

“There is no law about homosexuality,” he said at the time, in comments reported by the Hungarian LGBTQ+ advocacy group Hátter Society.

But the “propaganda” laws, which were modeled on similar regulations passed in Russia eight years ago, is just the latest example of Hungary’s years-long anti-LGBTQ+ crackdown. Last year, Orbán’s government banned same-sex adoptions and restricted trans people from legally correcting their gender, although the latter move was partially overturned by a court ruling.

The MPHH has been criticized in the past for links to Orbán’s ruling Fidesz party. The government allegedly wields “de facto” control over the five-person board and uses that power to appoint Fidesz loyalists, according to a report from Budapest’s Central European University.

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