LGBT rights in Bulgaria

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons in Bulgaria may face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Both male and female same-sex sexual activity are legal in Bulgaria, but same-sex couples and households headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for the same legal protections available to opposite-sex couples.

Bulgaria, like most countries in Eastern Europe, tends to be socially conservative when it comes to such issues as homosexuality. However, the independent private media occasionally report on gay events, the national and the private television channels have cast films with gay themes, and gay-themed movies are shown in the cinemas. In addition, some famous Bulgarians have come out, suggesting that gay men and lesbians are becoming more visible in Bulgaria.

There are several active LGBT organisations in Bulgaria which promote and fight for equality of LGBT people in mainstream society. The gay scene in Bulgaria is small but vibrant and it is mainly concentrated in cities like Sofia, Varna and Plovdiv, and the major tourist resorts along the Black Sea Coast. Sofia boasts its own annual Gay Pride Parade with a growing number of participants each year. The sea city of Varna however continues to face strong opposition from local authorities and the Bulgarian Orthodox Church in its attempts at staging a Gay Pride Parade.

Homosexual acts were decriminalized throughout the Ottoman Empire, including what is today Bulgaria, in 1858. Following the......
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