Hi! Ok so during my senior year of HS and possibly collage, I plan to travel abroad to Germany (Munich specificly). I am worried though that the people there are homophobic. I wouldn't be so worried exept I also possibly plan to to to collage in europe (musical arts major), and would thus end up having to come out to people.
Yes! European countries such as Germany, France, Sweden e.t.c... are extremely accepting of the lgbt community! When I went to Germany last year I saw sooooo many openly gay couples walking down the streets together
I'm not so sure about France mate, there have been several high profile homophobic attacks there recently.
I heard that Berlin is one of the most LGBT friendly travel destinations and they have a large pride celebration there.
There have? Can you point me to articles? I'm interested. But regarding the OP, yeah, I wouldn't worry too much about being gay in Germany. Nowhere is perfect, but it's not a place where you have to be always on your guard. As said above, there are homophobic people everywhere, of course. But when they're the exception rather than the rule... it's livable.
Confirmed by a native Don't know about the scene in München, but south germany tends to be a bit more conservative in general. France is tolerant?! No way... Same with Italy. They have their own places, just like every country, but the population is not that tolerant as in germany or other countries in north europe (Norway, etc...) Just take a look around, listen to the people... And definitely you should take the chance to check Berlin out.
France is most definitely not one of the world's most LGBT friendly countries. In fact, it's one of the very few European countries that I'd say are pretty unaccepting (of anyone not conforming to the "norm," really). As for Germany, yes! Very accepting, friendly people, generally. Like Vodkabaret said, the south is a little more conservative, but "more conservative" in Germany probably still means pretty damn accepting. You're traveling to one of the most progressive, LGBT friendly countries (and regions) in the world. Really, you have nothing to worry about.
Of course it is - most countries in the world are incredibly homophobic and hostile to LGBT people. Compare France to just about anywhere in Africa or Asia and the picture is very rosy indeed. Besides, most polls show people in France to be overwhelmingly in support of LGBT rights.
Of course, if you compare France to Asia or Africa, it's heaven for LGBT people. However, I was talking about Europe, and within Europe, it's one of the least accepting countries. A large percentage of the French are highly conservative, and as a result are not very pro-LGBT rights. I don't know how the research was conducted, but I find that poll to be very unrealistic. In my experience, the reality is completely different. There is absolutely no way 86% of France is "accepting." There are simply too many conservative groups and ideologies. (Also where are the Netherlands and Sweden in that poll? They are, by far, the most accepting, I'd say). In any case, I think at least we do agree on Germany.
I'm from northern Germany and can't say much about the south but I agree with everyone else that in general, the people in Germany are very accepting of lgbt people. I think it can vary a lot depending on who you spend your time with. Of course there are some people who are homophobic but in a a university/college environment you don't have to be worried (at least in my experience).
iv never been to Germany but from what i can tell form playing online i get called a fag a lot, also Germans must have a lot of money since so many of them fucked my mother. so many plane rides. but all jokes aside Europe is a pretty accepting country for lgbt people. so far i have come out to 4 people and they're all accepting and supportive as for other people i know who are fully out there experiences have been good too.
I know you didn't ask, but I hear Spain is very accepting of LGBT people. A friend went there and said that you see gay people walking around and holding hands and that no one bats an eye, at least the majority, I assume.
I would hardly say that France is one of the least accepting countries in all of Europe. Many countries in Eastern Europe are not accepting at all of homosexuality. In terms of countries who are least accepting of gays, I assure you that France would not even scratch the bottom ten.
Very true. I guess when I think about Europe I kind of disregard Eastern Europe. No idea why. Maybe because it's so different from the rest of Europe. But yes, those countries are definitely less accepting. (There are a few exceptions, though).
I have a number of French friends and acquaintances and all of them are either supporting or don't care about non-straight people. However, France is a surprisingly inhomogeneous country, so it's difficult to make any generalizations. My impression is that most French simply don't care, but then there are other ethnic groups in France that are more conservative or religious than the typical French person and these people might be far less accepting of any non typical behavior. But, to be honest, this is true for other countries as well. When it comes to Germany, I find the Germans to be very laid back people. Most of them have very good ideas about privacy and personal boundaries, so I don't think that you'll have problems in Germany. The Eastern European countries are a completely different story. There, the big cities tend to be fairly safe, but smaller places can be quite terrifying.