Tens of thousands of LGBTQ+ supporters marched through the capitals of Romania and Bulgaria on Saturday for annual Pride parades, calling for equality and legal recognition. The events in Bucharest and Sofia occurred against a backdrop of rising opposition from conservative groups in the two Orthodox Christian countries. According to ILGA-Europe’s 2025 Rainbow Map, Romania and Bulgaria ranked last among all 27 EU countries regarding the legal and policy landscape for LGBTQ+ people. While both nations joined the European Union in 2007 and adopted human rights legislation to meet EU standards, they do not recognize same-sex marriage or civil partnerships. Vlad Viski, president of the nongovernmental organization MozaiQ, stated that marchers are demanding the legalization of civil partnerships to secure rights such as inheritance, medical decisions, and survivor’s pensions. Simeon Vassilev, an organizer of Sofia Pride, noted that thousands of same-sex couples in Bulgaria live together without legal protection. The parades were met with counter-rallies by nationalist and religious groups. In Sofia, a “March of the Family” celebrated “Christian, patriotic and traditional values,” with the conservative Orthodox Church expressing disagreement with the Pride messages. In Bucharest, a nationalist group held a “March for Normality.” also, the “Progressive Bulgaria” party of Prime Minister Rumen Radev voiced support for the “March of the Family” in Parliament, describing it as a cornerstone of national security and identity. The Bulgarian Helsinki Committee criticized this statement for valuing one type of citizen over others. Simultaneously, thousands of demonstrators gathered in Belfast on Saturday to denounce anti-immigrant rioters who set fire to homes and cars earlier in the week. The violence followed the arrest of a 30-year-old man from Sudan on attempted murder charges in a stabbing that left a man partly blind. The anti-racism rally in Belfast featured signs such as “Your racism is not patriotism.” In Glasgow, Scotland, an anti-racism group rallied thousands to “stand up to the far right” after disorder targeted minorities and forced a mosque into lockdown.