Ukraine

Overview

Homosexuality is legal in Ukraine since 1991, but same-sex partnerships are not recognised by law, and adoption for same-sex couples is illegal. Sexual orientation and gender identity are included in the country’s anti-discriminatory laws, which aim at protecting from discrimination in the workplace. In addition, homosexual people are allowed to serve in the military. However, negative societal attitudes impede the effect of laws in practice. It is legal to change one's legal gender, but sex reassignment surgery is required. There is a number of organisations advocating for LGBTQ and gender equality rights in Ukraine that are listed below.

An overview of rights and legal acts by ILGA Europe.
Country ranking by ILGA Europe.

Academic research

UGN (Ukrainian Gender Research Network)
UADJI (Ukrainian Association for the Study of Women's History)
Ukrainian Centre for Gender Education, National Technical University of Ukraine 'Igor Sikovsky Kyiv Politechnic Institute'
Gender Centre, H.S. Skovoroda Kharkiv National Pedagogical University
Department of Gender Studies, The National University of Ostroh Academy
Kharkiv Centre for Gender Studies

Resources

Books

Buyantueva, R. & Shevtsova M. (2020). LGBTQ Activism in Central and Eastern Europe: Resistance, Representation and Identity. Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan.
Fedor, J., Umland, A., & Khromeychuk, O. (2016). Gender, nationalism, and citizenship in anti-authoritarian protests in Belarus, Russia and Ukraine. (Journal of Soviet and post-Soviet politics and society; v. 2, no. 1). Stuttgart, Germany: ibidem-Verlag.
Geĭdar, L., & Dovbakh, A. (2007). Bytʹ lesbii͡ankoĭ v Ukraine: Obretai͡a silu. Kiev: Z͡Henskai͡a setʹ.
Hankivsky, O., & Salnykova, A. (2012). Gender, politics, and society in Ukraine. (Canadian Electronic Library. Canadian publishers collection). Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
Науменко, C., Карасийчук, T., Касянчук, M. (2018). Украинское ЛГБТ-движение, 25. Киев: Гей-альянс Украина. Центр Наш світ. (2018). Райдужна книга. Киев: Центр Наш світ.
Vērdiņš, Kārlis, & Ozolinš, Jānis. (2016). Queer Stories of Europe. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.

Dissertations

Plakhotnik, Olga (2019). Imaginaries of Sexual Citizenship in Post-Maidan Ukraine: A Queer Feminist Discursive Investigation. PhD thesis The Open University.

Periodicals

Gayd! - a magazine for LGBTQ youth, including information about representatives of LGBTQ parties and movements, culture and places [in Ukrainian].
Один з нас - first Ukrainian and one of the first in the ex-USSR magazines about gay movement and the LGBTQ community, reflecting on homosexuality in culture and art [in Ukrainian].
Stonewall - a newspaper about the LGBTQ movement and the community in Ukraine, about a healthy lifestyle and HIV-service [in Ukrainian].

Repositories

A list of publications and reports on LGBTQ in Ukraine by LGBTQ Human Rights Nash Mir Center, Kyiv [in Ukrainian and English].
Національний ґендерний механізм (НҐМ) website contains a repository of books and articles on gender [in Ukrainian, English].
Electronic Library of the Ukrainian Association for the Study of Women's History [in Ukrainian].
КРОНA is an informational centre for gender related topics, that contains the electronic library, legal documents, magazine «Я» [in Ukrainian].
Electronic Kharkiv National Pedagogical University institutional repository [in Ukrainian, Russian, English].
Digital Repository of Ostroh Academy [in Ukrainian and English].

Data and statistics

Ukraine hate crime data by OSCE ODIHR [in English].
State-Sponsored Homophobia report: latest edition, includes maps and dataset, ILGA Europe - a world survey of sexual orientation laws + older editions [in English].

Reports

World Report 2019 (PDF). Ukraine. Events of 2018. (Online report). Human Rights Watch [in English].
ECRI - Country monitoring in Ukraine. Reports, 1997 - 2020 [in English].
Annual Review of the Human Rights Situation of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, and Intersex People in Ukraine covering the period of January to December 2020. ILGA Europe [in English].
Ukraine 2020. Amnesty International [in English].
Overcoming obstacles. LGBT situation in Ukraine in 2018. Kyiv: Nash Mir Center, 2019 [in English].
Долаючи перешкоди. Становище ЛГБТ в Україні у 2018 році. Kyiv: Nash Mir Center, 2019 [in Ukrainian].
The Face of Hatred. Crimes and incidents motivated by homophobia and transphobia in Ukraine in 2014-2017. The second edition, corrected and enlarged. Kyiv: Nash Mir Center, Kyiv, 2018 [in English].
Hate crimes and incidents in Ukraine. Kyiv: Nash Mir Center, 2018 [in English].
LGBT situation in Ukraine in 2018. Kyiv: Nash Mir Center, 2018 [in English].
Проміжний звіт про становище ЛГБТ в Україні у 2018 році. Kyiv: Nash Mir Center, 2018 [in Ukrainian].
Country Policy and Information Note. Ukraine: Sexual orientation and gender identity. Home Office, July 2017 [in English].
Право на пошуки щастя. Kyiv: Nash Mir Center, 2017 [in Ukrainian].
На піднесенні. Становище ЛГБТ в Україні у 2017 році. Kyiv: Nash Mir Center, 2018 [in Ukrainian].
Отчет о преступлениях на почве ненависти, совершенных по признакам сексуальной ориентации и гендерной идентичности в Украине в 2017 г. Kyiv: Nash Mir Center, 2017 [in Ukrainian].
На межі Вирішення проблем дискримінації та нерівності в Україні. London: The Equal Rights Trust Country Report Series: 5, серпень 2015 [in Ukrainian].
Human Rights Violations of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) People in Ukraine: A Shadow Report. Geneva: The Heartland Alliance for Human Needs and Human Rights, July 2013 [in English].
Discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity in employment, social security, health care and education in Ukraine – Alternative Report to the UN Economic and Social Council. Kyiv: Nash Mir Center, 2013 [in English].
Дискриминация по признакам сексуальной ориентации или гендерной идентичности в сферах труда, социального обеспечения, здравоохранения и образования в Украине. Kyiv : Nash Mir Center, 2013 [in Ukrainian].
Situation of LGBT People in Ukraine. Kyiv: Nash Mir Center, 2013 [in English].
Преступления на почве ненависти против ЛГБТ в Украине Отчет за 2012-2013 гг. Kyiv: Nash Mir Center, 2013 [in Ukrainian].
Study on Homophobia, Transphobia and Discrimination on Grounds of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Sociological Report: Ukraine. COWI and The Danish Institute for Human Rights, 2010 [in English].
An investigation into the status of same-sex partnerships in Ukraine. Kyiv: Nash Mir Center, 2009 [in English].

News portals

Discussion about same-sex marriage in Ukraine, including videos [Nakipelo.ua].
A collection of articles on LGBT. [The Village].
Media coverage of LGBT: in Russian, in Ukranian. [24tv.ua]
LGBT Portal [LGBT.org.ua].

Audio-video

Ukrainian Parents of LGBT Children Learn Acceptance. This story was created by the Thomson Reuters Foundation [in Russian with English subtitles].
A video featuring Kyiv Pride 2018 [Hromadskie International].
Discussion on LGBT rights in Ukraine [UKRLIFE.TV]. Ґендерна рівність в українській політиці at УКМЦ 23.05.2018
A discussion on gender equality and Ukrainian politics [Ukraine Crisis Media Center]. Video clips on LGBT in Ukraine [LGBT.org.ua].

Organisations