Russia officially bans same-sex marriage

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East Germany actually legalised gay sex before West Germany.

Didn't they scrap the death penalty first as well?

No, East Germany abolished it in 1987 (last execution in 1981). West Germany abolished it in 1949 (that is, it was banned from the beginning).

Fun fact: The German state of Hesse abolished the death penalty only in 2018 via ballot measure. However, it had never been applicable as federal law overrides state law according to Article 31 of the German Basic Law.

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For some reason, i think Estonia and Poland will someday adopt it too. Czech Republic is probably the first to pass it, followed by Slovakia, Slovenia, Poland and Estonia I think (which order is left to debate). Poland might be a hot take, but if they go the Estonia direction, it might happen but it won't be tomorrow.

Seriously, what prompts you to think that Poland will ever pass a bill legalizing SSM?
Even former President, labor union leader (!), and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate (lol) Lech Wałęsa contemplated back in 2013 banishing homosexual parliamentarians to the backbenches and, to top it all off, even brick them in...

[LAKISYLVANIA]

For some reason, i think Estonia and Poland will someday adopt it too. Czech Republic is probably the first to pass it, followed by Slovakia, Slovenia, Poland and Estonia I think (which order is left to debate). Poland might be a hot take, but if they go the Estonia direction, it might happen but it won't be tomorrow.

Seriously, what prompts you to think that Poland will ever pass a bill legalizing SSM?
Even former President, labor union leader (!), and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate (lol) Lech Wałęsa contemplated back in 2013 banishing homosexual parliamentarians to the backbenches and, to top it all off, even brick them in...

Poland actually is one of the more promising eastern nations. At the moment it doesn't look good and the church is still very relevant, but there is some call for moving to legalizing it. About half of all Polish people are in favour of SSM and we might get a left-liberal government next time they hold elections (PL2050 + Lewica + another party).

[Estrella]

For some reason, i think Estonia and Poland will someday adopt it too. Czech Republic is probably the first to pass it, followed by Slovakia, Slovenia, Poland and Estonia I think (which order is left to debate). Poland might be a hot take, but if they go the Estonia direction, it might happen but it won't be tomorrow.

Seriously, what prompts you to think that Poland will ever pass a bill legalizing SSM?
Even former President, labor union leader (!), and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate (lol) Lech Wałęsa contemplated back in 2013 banishing homosexual parliamentarians to the backbenches and, to top it all off, even brick them in...

Poland actually is one of the more promising eastern nations. At the moment it doesn't look good and the church is still very relevant, but there is some call for moving to legalizing it. About half of all Polish people are in favour of SSM and we might get a left-liberal government next time they hold elections (PL2050 + Lewica + another party).

While it isn't guaranteed that a left-liberal government will have the balls to force SSM through, you shouldn't underestimate the power of spite. Everyone knows about Jarosław Kaczyński and LGBT-free zones and Ayatollah Rydzyk, but it often goes unnoticed that this extremism has produced an equally extreme (in relative terms, obviously) backlash. It takes two to have a culture war. 

[Badger]

I still find it a little weird that former communist countries in eastern Europe where religion was banned/shunned have rebounded so hard to being the most religious countries in Europe now. On the one hand I can kind of see it as a backlash to communism, but on the other hand you’d think after a few generations grew up without religion, its influence would fade and not resurge so much even post-communism.

The religious influence and participation was always feel strong at the ground level. For example the church had a huge background part in organizing the solidarity movement in Poland. Now that nationalism has replaced Marxism as the basis for most East European political movements, religion is an effective Force to harness in that regard.

[🦀🎂🦀🎂]

Aside from eastern Germany, I don't think a single former communist country has SSM.

I think Slovenia has it legal, although sources seem to differ.

No, the parliament approved it in 2015, but it was rejected in a referendum. They have civil partnerships, though.

For some reason, i had a false memory that that referendum was anulled for some technicality, but further research finds nothing to support that.

[Lexii, harbinger of chaos and sexual anarchy]

Aside from eastern Germany, I don't think a single former communist country has SSM.

I think Slovenia has it legal, although sources seem to differ.

No, the parliament approved it in 2015, but it was rejected in a referendum. They have civil partnerships, though.

For some reason, i had a false memory that that referendum was anulled for some technicality, but further research finds nothing to support that.

Maybe it was a confusion with the 2015 Slovak same-sex marriage referendum?
The referendum was not valid, despite getting a 95% support among voters, as the turnout did not reach the required threshold of 50%, with only 21.4% of citizens casting a vote.

[🦀🎂🦀🎂]

Aside from eastern Germany, I don't think a single former communist country has SSM.

I think Slovenia has it legal, although sources seem to differ.

No, the parliament approved it in 2015, but it was rejected in a referendum. They have civil partnerships, though.

For some reason, i had a false memory that that referendum was anulled for some technicality, but further research finds nothing to support that.

Maybe it was a confusion with the 2015 Slovak same-sex marriage referendum?
The referendum was not valid, despite getting a 95% support among voters, as the turnout did not reach the required threshold of 50%, with only 21.4% of citizens casting a vote.

That's pretty funny, because I made the exact same Slovak-Slovene error today in a completely different post. (I made, and then deleted a post to Estrella on the Prince Philip dies thread asking about the status of the defunct Karađordević Yugoslav dynasty forgetting that Estrella is from Slovakia, and had to awkwardly change the post to asking about the Bohemian monarchy instead)

Maybe I should just double down on this mistake, and maintain both "countries" are the same polity playing an elaborate ruse on the international community.

[parochial boy]

Aside from eastern Germany, I don't think a single former communist country has SSM.

I think Slovenia has it legal, although sources seem to differ.

No, the parliament approved it in 2015, but it was rejected in a referendum. They have civil partnerships, though.

For some reason, i had a false memory that that referendum was anulled for some technicality, but further research finds nothing to support that.

Maybe it was a confusion with the 2015 Slovak same-sex marriage referendum?
The referendum was not valid, despite getting a 95% support among voters, as the turnout did not reach the required threshold of 50%, with only 21.4% of citizens casting a vote.

That's pretty funny, because I made the exact same Slovak-Slovene error today in a completely different post. (I made, and then deleted a post to Estrella on the Prince Philip dies thread asking about the status of the defunct Karađordević Yugoslav dynasty forgetting that Estrella is from Slovakia, and had to awkwardly change the post to asking about the Bohemian monarchy instead)

Maybe I should just double down on this mistake, and maintain both "countries" are the same polity playing an elaborate ruse on the international community.

It’s a perfectly normal mistake to make.

For example, I once accidentally hit a kangaroo while driving near Vienna

[Estrella]

Aside from eastern Germany, I don't think a single former communist country has SSM.

I think Slovenia has it legal, although sources seem to differ.

No, the parliament approved it in 2015, but it was rejected in a referendum. They have civil partnerships, though.

For some reason, i had a false memory that that referendum was anulled for some technicality, but further research finds nothing to support that.

Maybe it was a confusion with the 2015 Slovak same-sex marriage referendum?
The referendum was not valid, despite getting a 95% support among voters, as the turnout did not reach the required threshold of 50%, with only 21.4% of citizens casting a vote.

That's pretty funny, because I made the exact same Slovak-Slovene error today in a completely different post. (I made, and then deleted a post to Estrella on the Prince Philip dies thread asking about the status of the defunct Karađordević Yugoslav dynasty forgetting that Estrella is from Slovakia, and had to awkwardly change the post to asking about the Bohemian monarchy instead)

Maybe I should just double down on this mistake, and maintain both "countries" are the same polity playing an elaborate ruse on the international community.

I wish I was here in 2018 when Robert Fico* and Miro Cerar announced their resignation on the same day

The confusion is actually even worse in native languages:
- in Slovak, Slovakia is Slovensko, the adjective Slovak is slovenský and Slovenia is Slovinsko
- in Slovene, Slovenia is Slovenija, the adjective Slovene is slovenski and Slovakia is Slovaška

* not to be confused with Roberto Fico, who was elected President of Italian Chamber of Deputies a week later

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

East Germany actually legalised gay sex before West Germany.

Imagine the Stasi breaking down someone's door in 1970 because of strange noises reported, searching everything in the house and then as they leave they say how lucky they are to not be in West Germany.

[CumbrianLefty]

East Germany actually legalised gay sex before West Germany.

Didn't they scrap the death penalty first as well?

No, East Germany abolished it in 1987 (last execution in 1981). West Germany abolished it in 1949 (that is, it was banned from the beginning).

Misremembering there just a bit then, though I really didn't know the BRD abolished it *that* early.