The night after the first round of the French elections, in which the far-right National Rally (Rassemblement National) party came out ahead, four young men were arrested for a homophobic and transphobic attack in Paris. Despite the gravity of the incident, the far-right students were anything but repentant upon arrival at the police station. “In three weeks,” one of them sneered, alluding to the anticipated far-right victory in the second round of the elections, “we’ll be able to beat up all the f*ggots we want”.

The National Rally- outmanoeuvred by the left which, despite long standing disagreements swiftly banded together to form a coalition with the centrists and block the far-right - ended up coming third in the second and determinate round of the elections, to the shock and relief of millions who had considered their victory certain. Yet they now occupy more seats in the French Parliament than a far-right party has ever won before.

This reflects a phenomenon which has reached every corner of Europe, and which came to a head in June, when the far-right gained a record number of seats in the European Parliament. Authoritarian anti-immigrant parties, often with neo-fascist and neo-Nazi roots and connections, have been becoming mainstream or even dominant forces in countries in which until recently their supporters only dared speak of them in hushed tones. These parties are united by their conviction that the (idealised) traditional ‘nation state’ must be defended from ‘outsiders’. As longtime outsiders, LGBTQ+ people are a target.

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Unsurprisingly, given the heterogeneity of Europe, the positions taken by the leadership of European far-right movements towards LGBTQ+ rights seem, at first glance, to differ.

Some parties have continued unashamedly in their attempts to strip away, or block progress in, LGBTQ+ rights and protections, at times drawing from traditional conservative rhetoric, at others leaning into their extremism, parroting increasingly absurdist homophobic conspiracy theories such as ‘globohomoism’. On the other hand, others, whilst broadly retaining their hostility towards trans people, have been becoming increasingly aware of the benefits of surface level ‘pinkwashing’ when courting a more centrist electorate. They have discovered that false concern for our wellbeing both adds to their respectability in the mainstream and gives them another weapon with which to take aim at their main target- Muslim immigrants and their families- who are now painted as the greatest threat the LGBTQ+ community faces.

The insincerity of these self-styled allies is evident. Admiration for Orbán- the infamous Hungarian Prime Minister who in recent years banned ‘gender propaganda’ (that is, any information that is deemed to ‘promote’ homosexuality or gender transition) for under-18s- is a staple of far-right groups in Europe, including those who are most fervent in their proclaimed allyship. Indeed, the rank-and-file of these parties tend to characterise LGBTQ+ and progressive movements in a similar way- as constituting the primary proponents of a maligned ‘gender ideology’, a conspiracy to undermine the nuclear family by encouraging people to stray from traditional, ‘natural’, gender roles, be this in the form of women’s quotas, abortion, same-sex adoption, or gender self-recognition.

Amidst an increase in support for far-right parties in Europe, the outlook for LGBTQ+ people in Europe is uncertain. Far-right parties are currently in government in seven EU countries and threaten to take charge of one more before the end of the year. However, of the governments in which the far-right are currently represented, six are constituted of coalitions with more moderate parties, often constraining room for radical political manoeuvre. Even in countries such as Italy, where the dominant far-right’s alliance with an ostensibly more moderate party did not prevent it from imposing homophobic ordinances, individual regions have resisted, voting to impose their own laws against homophobia.

That being said, it is important to note that the far-right is not the only political faction to pose a threat to the LGBTQ+ community. Others, particularly conservatives, have been content to use trans people as a ‘political football’ across the continent- a phenomenon which will be familiar to members of the UK trans community. Indeed, whilst countries governed by the far-right are few and far between in Europe, their growing popularity has imbued them with more influence, as centrist and centre-right parties adopt more socially conservative policies to try and win over an electorate increasingly favourable to the far-right. This can be seen at the international level as well as the domestic. Within the EU, the centre and centre right’s need to prove themselves legitimate in this new context, alongside the upsurge in the number of far-right representatives and ministers in the European Parliament and the Council of Europe, has already led to anti-outsider measures such as the draconian new migration bill, and has raised fears amongst the LGBTQ+ community that the EU’s ‘watchdog’ role and funding for LGBTQ+ organisations may come under threat. In any case, an intensification in ‘culture war’ politics at the EU level is certain.

Yet, there is reason for hope. Despite an increase in homophobic and transphobic hate crimes, support for LGBTQ+ rights is growing around Europe. This is true even for countries such as Hungary, in which support for LGBTQ+ people is at an all-time high. The far-right may be emboldened, but their rise in the polls has not translated into, nor is indicative of, increasing homophobic sentiment among ordinary people. 

Furthermore, the far-right remain divided, and therefore weak, within EU institutions, with the two irreconcilable party groupings that existed in the European Parliament before the most recent European election splitting into three. At the same time, the ‘cordon sanitaire’- the traditional agreement among parties to not collaborate with the far-right- is holding strong for now, with no member of the ‘Patriots of Europe’ group being elected to a vice-presidential or vice-chair position, despite holding legitimate claims to such posts.

For now the forward moving march of the far-right across Europe appears strong and steady, in the UK as much as on the continent. However, if the results of the French elections in July prove anything, it is that no defeat is inevitable.