Vladimir Simonko, the chair of the Lithuanian gay League (LGL), has visited the United States for the first time after the restoration of independence of Lithuania. 15min.lt reports that he is still longing for the Texas Cowboys and has left a piece of his heart in San Francisco.

The LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) activists from all over the world have acquainted themselves not only with the democratic governance in the States, but also with the LGBT movement and its history, taking place therein. Pictures (photo: David Braniff) from the visit can be accessed through the LGL’s Facebook account.

Despite the fact that Vladimir Simonko has visited the United States before, this time he met with very important US officials, who are responsible for the formation and implementation of the US foreign policy guidelines.

According to the LGL chair, his visit to four cities, namely – Washington D.C., Minneapolis, Dallas/Fort Worth and San Francisco, has left him with indelible impressions and experiences.

The International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) was created on the initiative by the US Department of State four decades ago, but for the first time in history it was organized for the LGBT activists from all over the world.

According to the organizers of the program from the Department of State and the US diplomat Jonathan Berger, who is currently serving in Lithuania, the main purpose of this program is to familiarize activists with democratic governance and civil society in the US. In addition to this, the participants gain valuable experience during the meetings with the representatives of State Governments, municipalities and various NGOs, actively working in the field of human rights.

“We have familiarized ourselves with different LGBT topics, which are the most relevant ones in the cities that we have visited,” – says Vladimir Simonko. “However, we were impressed by the positive attitude of the Americans and their quest for finding the most suitable solutions for various problems.”

The meeting with the leaders of international NGOs, namely “Human Rights Campaign”,  “Human Rights Watch” and “Freedom House”, left a strong impression on the LGL chair. According to Vladimir Simonko, he had unique opportunity to explore the ways in which these organizations work, how they crate their action strategies on national and international levels, and how these organizations further their goals through implementation of various national advocacy campaigns.

The radius of the trip – from the capital city of Washington D.C. to the West, from one coast in the East to another one in the West – was not burdensome to the participants. On the contrary, it enabled to grasp the major differences in implementing the LGBT rights among the various cities.

According to Vladimir Simonko, he was impressed by the State of Minnesota, where the national rally on marriage equality took place on a visiting day. The equality supporters have proposed amendments to the State’s Constitution, which would repeal discriminatory provisions that the marriage is conducted only between a man and a woman.

The slogan of LGBT activists in this State is “Vote NO! Don’t Limit the Freedom to Marry.” The most interesting fact, according to Vladimir Simonko, is that by saying ‘no’ the citizens support marriage equality, and not vice versa.

“We have visited the advocacy center, where I have seen the work of the campaign’s volunteers. While campaigning on the telephone to vote for marriage equality in a state-level referendum, which will take place together with the Presidential elections, volunteers tried to convince citizens of the State so support their cause,” – says Vladimir Simonko in admiration.

In Minneapolis the LGBT activists have discussed the issue of homophobic bullying in schools and various methods of solving this particular problem. The strongest impression, according to the interviewee, was caused by a mother of a child, who committed a suicide allegedly due to the continuous bullying at school on grounds of sexual orientation. Tammy Aaber, who a well-known activist fighting against bullying at schools, has established a foundation of her name and she is visiting the US schools with the view of speaking about the problem out loud.

“During our visit to the “General Mills” corporation in Minnesota, where the principles of equal opportunities and LGBT equality are enshrined in the strategic guidelines of the corporation, we have understood how important civic engagement is. Unfortunately, Lithuanians very often forget about it,” – the chair of the LGL fetches a sigh.

The Directives of the European Union face certain challenges of implementation not only in Lithuania, but also in another Member States. The employment relations in the US, on the contrary, are characterized by respect for an individual and equal opportunities.

“We were amazed by the unique atmosphere in Texas – men in hats and huge land-rovers. It felt like a real Western!” – says Vladimir Simonko about his impressions in this State. He adds that men in hats were outstanding dancers in gay bars as well.

“In Dalas we experienced what it takes to be a gay cowboy. We visited one of the best gay bars probably in the whole United States. It is a place where the cowboys perform line dances with their hats on,” – the LGL chair describes his impressions from the gay club. “The strongest impression was caused by dancing gay couples. Seeing this view made me believe that the story in ‘Brokeback Mountain’ was actually true.”

The LGBT activist also met with the film director Rober Camina, who directed a movie on a pogrom of a gay bar in the US, titled ‘Raid of the Rainbow Lounge.’ The movie captures illegal actions by the police forces, which caused an outcry in the society.

“We have met with one of the antagonists in this move, namely the chief of the police force, who has changed his attitudes towards LGBT individuals drastically after the film screening,” – remembers Vladimir Simonko.

A new position in the local police force was established after this allegedly unexpected police raid in order to maintain better relations with LGBT community. Local LGBT activists have prepared training materials for police officers, focusing on LGBT issues and various aspects of discrimination.

According to Vladimir Simonko, their stay in San Francisco felt like a fairy-tale. The guests were impressed not only by the compact city that is surrounded by nature, but also by the local LGBT community and its history. The movie about the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in the US, i.e. Harvey Milk, who lived and worked in San Francisco, was screened in Lithuanian movie theaters as well.

During their stay in San Francisco human rights activists visited the local LGBT center, which was established on the donations by US citizens. The local transgendered community organizes its meetings there. The center is well known for its well-developed fundraising activities. The guests also visited the historic electoral headquarters of Harvey Milk and the place, where he was shot by his political opponent.

“San Francisco is a city, which is difficult to leave. I feel that I have left a piece of my heart there. I believe that the civil society in the US will understand that the reelection of the current President (i.e. Barack Obama) will give a lot of hope not only to the citizens of the United States, but also to the citizens of the European Union and Lithuania,” – the LGL chair shares his memories about his recent visit to the US.