COURAGE

connecting collections

After the foundation, the members of Homérosz decided to build international relationships with other LMBTQI organizations from the region. The first attempt was an informal meeting (took place in Budapest) organized by Homérosz in 1987 - followed by two other ones (1989) - with LMBT activists from socialist (Czechoslovak, Poland, GDR, Yugoslavia) and even from Western countries (Austria - HOSI, ILGA "International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association" founded in the UK).
Thanks to the regime change, LMBTQI issues become more virulent and acknowleged by the public in the formal socialist countries and simulteanously the international awareness towards Eastern Europe was also raised significantly and especially in Hungary. Homérosz joined to several international networks during the transitional period. One of the most prominent one was the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA).
ILGA was founded in 1978 (UK) with the purpose to represent and protect gay rights in an international level and bring attention to anti-gay laws worldwide (e.g. Soviet Union, Greece). Gradually, ILGA became a worldwide federation with 1200 members organisations. The organisation runs by an Executive Board with 18 members.

The international charitable foundation Smoloskyp is concerned with the documentation of human rights violations and with providing humanitarian aid. It runs fundraising campaigns among the Ukrainian diaspora in the US and Canada. It also provides support for former political prisoners and their children and offers various scholarships for people with academic or literary talent.