Have the conditions for the LGBT* community in Lithuania improved since 2010?
*LGTB = lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender
If I’ll be in Lithuania next year in the summer, I’ll take my kids, and maybe some friends will join us as well, to march in a gay pride parade. And if there will be event to raise awareness of women and child abuse in Lithuania, I’ll be the first to attend.

Viktorija Ruškulienė

As we learned in 5-th grade of school: “a human is a social creature, typically living in small flocks, called families, surrounded by extended group, called society”. Some people choose to live alone or separated (less than 1%), but most seek happiness in relation and affection with other individuals. 49% of human nation are women and not all women will have children in their lives, and not all mothers will survive to see their children grow to adulthood. Nature programmed women to share their responsibility and happiness of raising offsprings with selected biological or non-biological group, called family. Children raised by public groups (when no constant caregiver participates in child’s upbringing) are called orphans and they experience great hardships in their lives. No human can survive without support and care of other human until adolescence (unless his name is Mowgli). In order to protect human survival Nature programmed us to experience greatest happiness by devoting ourselves to children, this period of life is called parenthood and most of humans do not have fulfillment in their lives without experiencing it. Each member of human society shall have a right to live in a family and experience parenthood, even if that person did not produce own biological offsprings. These rights can be altered by society only if person committed severe crime against human life or welfare. I do not know anyone, who rightfully shall be denied the right to get married or raise children, and I closely know people of many races, Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, Atheists, non-religious-non-atheists, most are heterosexuals, some homosexuals, few transgendered, some cannot have children and want to become parents, some had children and gave them up for adoption, most are parents and very happy about it, some are parents and never stop complaining about it, few decided not to have a partnership in life, most live with one partner, some are only happy with more than one partner, some live happily in partnership without sex, some believe that sex is a main thing in their lives, some talk about sex and show their sexuality publicly, some hide it and never talk about it – we are all humans, no group is better than other. If I’ll be in Lithuania next year in the summer, I’ll take my kids, and maybe some friends will join us as well, to march in a gay pride parade. And if there will be event to raise awareness of women and child abuse in Lithuania, I’ll be the first to attend.

Viktorija Ruškulienė
New Jersey, USA
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Kenny Kaunas
Since I don't live in Lithuania, I have a question for those that do: Have the conditions for the LGBT community improved since 2010?
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Aage Myhre ‎Kenny, there are some points of hope. This is what the new Klaipeda Mayor said to me in an interview last year: "Opposite to any former mayors of Vilnius and Petras Gražulis himself, Klaipėda, and I personally, welcomes gay prides and gay communities. The whole idea of censorship is based on ridiculous logics, as psychologist O. Tapinas said once correctly “if you observe birds for a while you will become bird yourself”. I think we are talking about so called “10% society” and the rest 90% can’t be “persuaded” into homosexuality. Denial will only increase frustration in society." https://vilnews.com/?p=7374
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Kenny Kaunas Sergey: I'm sure you're right. I know that there is an upcoming event, and I sincerely hope it goes well. The parade of 2010 was a blemish to say the least. For some reason I have a problem with the word "tolerance". Hopefully, people can accept the fact that people are BORN that way.
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Kenny Kaunas Aage: It's nice to know that the current mayor is more progressive!
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Aage Myhre I agree. And, in fact I think our constant pressure, from the www.VilNews.com, side for more normality and balanced understanding, begins to help a little bit...
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Kenny Kaunas Absolutely, there are many people abroad who are concerned with this particular issue, as well as other issues. I still don't understand why the Lithuanian Christian Democratic Party exists. I read Vilnews every day, Aage. For someone who doesn't speak Lithuanian, it really helps to bridge the gaps. I thank you, and your contributors for keeping the various communities informed.
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Kenny Kaunas Aage, there's no doubt in my mind that LGBT culture will integrate into Lithuanian society. I live in Toronto, which is probably one of the most multicultural cities in North America. I have many gay friends, and being a heterosexual male, I can walk into a gay bar and feel just as comfortable as I would in any other bar. There are radio stations and television channels dedicated to their community (which are accessible in Lithuania as well). I understand the psychological ramifications of 50 years of occupation can be quite damaging, but that cannot be an excuse for these displays of hatred. Lithuania is obviously very Catholic, but religion has no place in politics. I am by no means religious, and I really don't understand why it's so difficult to separate the two. It's an indoctrination of a belief system that marginalizes people who don't subscribe to that ideology. Yet, it has governing power. I can't even comment on the Neo Nazis. That's just too depressing. There was a time when Toronto had skinheads, many of them are now reformed, and many of them were beaten to death. Either way, nothing positive can come from hate en masse. Something needs to be done about that, yesterday.
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Daiva Repeckaite Of course they would not prefer it in a more welcoming environment. But work is not only about getting hired and paid. It's also about informal communication, team-building trips, celebrating a successful end of a project with your team and all that. Your position and pay may be the same, but if colleagues feel uncomfortable sitting next to you in a sauna, or sleeping in the same tent, or feel awkward in your presence in general (and such ignorance CAN be expected, as many people don't realize that LGBT persons are not solely defined by their sexuality), you may want to conceal it 'for the peace of mind'. You may want to go for a drink with a same-sex colleague and don't have others giggling that it's a date. 
And think about multisexuals - learning that their friend is 'undecided' about their sexual preference makes many people very, very uneasy.
Also, remember my comment about the president's electoral campaign.
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Kenny Kaunas I understand your viewpoint. Ultimately, I think it's up to the individual whether or not they want to "out" themselves. If someone who's gay is comfortable enough with one of their colleagues, I don't see why they wouldn't mention it. Just because someone is openly gay, it doesn't mean the world has to know. Frankly, it's no-one’s business really. If someone tells you they're gay, they obviously trust you implicitly. It's extremely personal. If I told someone a personal story, I would assume they'd respect the fact that it was personal, and they'd know not to blab. However, the feeling of uneasiness is fear of the unknown. That has to be confronted in order to help foster acceptance and mutual understanding. I think "knowing your audience" is key.