“Do we want to live with russian “values” or really be a free nation?”

_{Photo: Khrystyna Pashkina}

Mariia joined the army back in 2015 to protect her home city, Mariupol. She faced a full-scale invasion there, in the barracks of her unit. She was wounded while leaving the besieged city. Now, she continues to serve in the eastern direction.

“I took the first explosions lightly because we heard them sometimes. I realized what was really happening when the connection disappeared throughout the city. In mid-April, we attempted to break out of the “Illich” factory but were fired upon. Then we began to go out in small groups: 8 days on foot under constant fire. What I saw in my city was very scary, my memory simply blocked a lot of it.”

Mariia says that what she experienced greatly affected her psychological state. She will undergo a course of treatment and emphasizes the need for psychological programs for the military: no matter how strong a person is, war leaves an imprint on the psyche. In the case of LGBTQ+ military personnel, the situation is exacerbated by ongoing harassment of the community.

"We also read the news. This situation with the “Zhovten” cinema and the caption “LGBT=russnia". Where is the logic? If they banned LGBT, do we really want to be like them? The following thoughts come to mind: why am I here? To be hated? We are not somehow more vulnerable — we just want to be perceived as equals.''

According to Mariia, lesbians in the army are treated better than other members of the community. Lesbianism among men is very sexualized, at most it is joking about it. At the same time, at her previous place of service, she was demanded to delete a post from social networks about her coming out, so as not to “disgrace the brigade”.

Mariia believes that a person has the right to be yourself, as long as they does not break the law and does not harm others. When disrespect for the rights of others becomes the norm in society, sooner or later, you can become those others. Unfortunately, during russia`s armed aggression, many Ukrainians felt it themselves.

During the war, the right to legalize relations became especially relevant. Mariia and her partner even thought about registering the marriage in Denmark. The problem is that this marriage will not have any legal force in Ukraine.

“Why am I forced to leave my own country to start a family? I gave 9 years of my life to this country. I want her to protect us as much as we protect it. If the legal rights of LGBTQ+ people were legally fixed, then there would be less hate: people would gradually understand that this is normal, that we are also people who have the same rights.”

_{The information campaign was created by Різні.Рівні and ХарківПрайд in support of об’єднання ЛГБТК+ військових for the RFSL.}