European Court of Justice ruling: LGBTQ stories not harmful to children

Love is love – this could be the verdict of the Court of Human Rights in simplified terms. Lithuania had stopped selling a children’s book with fairy tales about same-sex couples. Now the state has to pay compensation.

She was only 44 years old, the author of “Amber Heart”. But the book by the Lithuanian activist Neringa Dangvydé Macaté is still occupying the courts.

She published the book in 2013. It contains a collection of traditional fairy tales, but which also features divorced families, bullying and same-sex couples.

Sale with youth protection warning

But immediately after the publication there was trouble. Members of the Lithuanian parliament complained and the regulator found the book potentially dangerous for children under 14. Mainly because of the two stories that are about gay couples – couples who get married and are then happy forever.

After the criticism, the sale of the book was initially stopped. It later received a sticker saying the book could be dangerous for children under the age of 14.

Mother has continued the process since 2020

Neringa Macaté sued, but finally lost in 2019 before the Supreme Court in Lithuania. That is why she turned to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in Strasbourg, supported by several human rights organizations. After her death in 2020, her mother continued the process.

At the oral hearing last March, the Lithuanian government stuck to its position. The book describes homosexual relationships too emotionally and is atypical for fairy tales that take into account how children naturally think.

Lawyer: Children know how adults express love

Attorney Robert Wintemute, hired by the mother, fundamentally attacked claims that the book would endanger children. “It’s hard to understand what a negative effect the referenced passages could have on children as young as nine or ten,” says Wintemute. Children would know how adults express their love. You would simply learn here that two women or two men would do the same.

ECtHR: Mention of homosexuality does no harm

The grand chamber of the European Court of Human Rights now clearly sided with the author. The initial recall of the book and the government warnings violated her right to free speech.

The judges did not find that the book promoted gay families – or that straight couples were offended. On the contrary, the book promotes respect for all members of society.

Lithuania has to pay thousands of euros in compensation

The Court refers to previous judgments. There is no scientific evidence that mentioning homosexuality could harm children. And it is not okay for the state to side with a certain heterosexual lifestyle. That is not compatible with the principles of equality and tolerance in a democratic society.

The Lithuanian state must now pay Neringa Dangvydé Macaté’s mother EUR 12,000 in compensation in addition to the costs of the procedure.