Pink council debate in Rijswijk

In Rijswijk, candidate council members intend to pay more attention to the well-being of older LGBTI people, together with the Sports Council and the John Blankenstein Foundation, to make the sports climate more attractive and to keep the topic of 'LGBTI' on the agenda. They promised this during a noisy pink council debate.

More than seventy participants attend the Pink Council debate in Rijswijk on 12 March. The position of lesbian women, gay men, bisexuals, transgenders and people with an intersex condition (LGBTI) is clearly of interest. The twelve politicians in the panel hold strong opinions and there are also strong opinions in the room, which people agree to. 'That is democracy', as moderator Erwin Angad-Gaur says at one point.

Symbol policy
What both many politicians and many people in the public are concerned about is 'symbol politics'. What good is it if the municipality promotes that the presence of LGBTI's is taken for granted? Jeffrey Keus of Rijswijk Municipal Interests: 'We have to identify the real problem. In this multicultural society you see more and more intolerance. Gays do not feel safe in asylum seekers' centres. That's what it should be about.' Arnout Timmerman (We.) 'After the shooting in Orlando two years ago, I was also done with my faith for a while. But what's the point of polarizing? You won't solve anything with that.' The statement that the municipality should put 'dear resident' above a letter instead of 'dear sir/madam' can count on little support. 'It's nice, but we're going to push through. Where does it end?' says Menno Ezinga (VVD). Galiek Habieb (Party Social Cultural Center) agrees with him. 'I'm not much for inclusivity, it's about the content.' From the audience comes the comment: 'Is this a political debate now? If these are the main issues, I'm done!' Johanna Besteman of the CDA believes that it should also be about the content, but: 'Symbols are necessary to get the discussion going.' Jasper van Buul (Better for Rijswijk) responds: 'It is precisely with symbols that you put people who could otherwise be your ally against you.' Rick Krumeich of the PvdA also thinks so: 'There is a great deal of grittiness when you formalize diversity.' A rainbow zebra crossing is also a symbol about which Rijswijk strongly disagrees. Marloes Borsboom of GroenLinks thinks it is important. 'A symbol can hold up a mirror to you. A rainbow zebra crossing is an international symbol. If you put it with you in a prominent place, for example at the station, you make it clear to the target group that they are not alone.' Van Buul thinks it's nonsense: 'There are other ways. Keeping the police station open 24/7, that makes more sense for security.'

Elderly
The parties do agree when it comes to the position of LGBTI elderly. It is important that there are places where 'pink' older people can meet like-minded people. Jeroen Smit, an (older) resident of Rijswijk, explains: 'The lives of pink elderly have been different from many others. We usually don't have children, for example. It is important that you have your own circle around you. I tried to set up an LGBTI group in my flat, but none of the 250 residents wanted to join. In addition, the elderly sometimes come out at a later age, and attention must also be paid to this. It is difficult to organize something, it takes a long time before something is in place and you have to maintain it. That costs time and money. The elderly workers of Welfare could pick this up.' Paul Just de la Paisieres (LP Party) tells how a gay couple he knows was refused entry to a care home. Mirjam Hermans (Rijswijks Belang) wants to know: 'Are the elderly afraid of each other, of the looks of peers, or of residents of Rijswijk? When you're 70, 80, you don't always feel safe.' Besteman (CDA) is impressed: 'A network is important for the elderly. That's what I'm going to fight for.' Arjan van den Bosch: 'Let's work together with COC Haaglanden on this. Otherwise we can't figure it out.' Timmerman (We.) adds: 'This is also observed in many municipalities. Let's put our heads together and organize something together.'

Sport
The parties also come together in the field of sports. Rens Veerman (D66): 'Boys and girls don't come out of the closet in their team. We can do something about that together with the John Blankenstein Foundation.' Van den Bosch agrees with him: 'The previous lecture really missed that. The new council can draw up a good policy on this and collaborate with the John Blankenstein Foundation.' Someone from the Rijswijkse Sports Council, which was founded in January, is sitting in the room. 'We want to get started on this. We would like to expand our council to include other organisations.' Timmerman: 'This could be in line with what the John Blankenstein Foundation is doing in this region.' Borsboom: 'We will include it in the new agreement.'

rainbow city
During the last statement – ​​Rijswijk must register as a Rainbow City in order to receive a subsidy for LGBTI activities – emotions are running high again. 'Why would you create problems, it's not an issue here at all' someone from the audience shouts. Another: 'What I'm shocked about is that gay students go back into the closet when they have a job. And in sports and on the street you always hear the swear word “gay!”. Yes, then you can file a report, but does that change anything?' Politicians and the public agree that we must enforce the law, but that behavior cannot be changed just like that. The majority of the panel members is in favor of Rijswijk registering as a Rainbow City. 'In four years' time Rijswijk will be LGBTI-friendly', promises Just de la Paisieres.

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