Concerns Raised Over Anti-Trans Event in European Parliament

Eurochild, ILGA-Europe and other organisations sent a joint letter to Parliament President Metsola, condemning an event that framed trans rights as harmful to women and children and urging action against hate speech.

The event, titled “How Trans Policy Harms Women and Children” and occurring on 18 March 2025, positions the human rights of trans people as contrary to those of women and children – a common anti-trans narrative used by anti-rights and anti-democracy actors to alienate and dehumanise trans people.

Within the European Institutions, there should be no space for anti-rights movements, including any backlash against universal human rights that contribute to attacks on democracy and the shrinking of civil society space.

This prompted ILGA-Europe, Eurochild, IPPF European Network, EL*C, TGEU, and IGLYO to issue a joint letter to President Roberta Metsola, urging a response. In the letter, they emphasised that fundamental human rights protections for trans individuals, including personal autonomy, privacy, identity, non-discrimination, bodily integrity, and protection from violence, are equally vital for all, including women and children.

The event spreads misinformation and fosters a hostile environment, thereby contradicting the European Union’s core values as outlined in Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) and Articles 8 and 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). It should not have been approved to take place on European Parliament grounds.

In addition to requesting immediate attention to the matter, the coalition sought a meeting with President Metsola to discuss broader strategies for countering hate speech and discriminatory narratives within the European Parliament. They stressed the need to prevent similar events in the future and to safeguard the institution’s role as a defender of human rights and democracy.