13 of the 20 countries that have legalized same-sex marriage are located in Europe. Among them, Malta has been declared the best country in Europe regarding LGBTQ rights.

Statistics show real data, but the reality on the streets of Eastern Europe is different. LGBT rights activists say that discrimination is still present, and the EU's efforts regarding equal rights are viewed with skepticism.

The 2022 edition of Europe's Rainbow List by ILGA Europe found that LGBT individuals in Azerbaijan, Turkey and Armenia experience the worst living conditions in Europe.

ILGA ranks 49 European countries on a scale from 0% to 100%. Those closest to 0% are considered the ones where discrimination and severe human rights violations are most common, while the countries at the opposite end of the scale respect human rights and full equality.

Azerbaijan ranks last with only 2.4%, considered a country where it is dangerous to declare your sexual orientation if it is other than straight.

In 2024, Poland was ranked as the "worst" country in the European Union for LGBT+ people for the fifth consecutive year, according to ILGA-Europe's annual Rainbow Map.

The only countries in Europe with lower scores than Poland are all outside the EU: San Marino (14.5%), Monaco (14%), Belarus (11%), Armenia (9%), Turkey (5%), Azerbaijan (2%) and Russia (2%).

Romania ranks just ahead of Poland but behind Bulgaria and Ukraine.

At the other end of the ranking are Malta (88%), Iceland (83%), Belgium (78.5%), Spain (76.5%) and Denmark (76.5%).

Most EU candidate countries - Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Ukraine - are slow in fulfilling their commitments and delay legal regulations regarding sexual minorities.

However, Moldova climbed 14 places in the ranking and is far ahead of Romania. This is due only to the fact that sexual orientation and gender identity have been more clearly included in the legislation, something Romania has done long ago.

In recent years, characters on television and film have become more diverse, breaking historical boundaries for race and sexual orientation.

Today, viewers are more likely than ever to see LGBT characters on screen, playing an important role in changing public perception of the LGBT community.

The Norwegian series SKAM achieved international success, and the third season, which included an LGBT storyline, broke all national streaming records.

Meanwhile, series like Sex Education, Baby Reindeer, The Life You Wanted, Beautiful People, Orange is the New Black, Glee or Dear White People are just a few of the most-watched by teenagers and young adults in Europe, featuring LGBT characters and plots.

Representation and normalization of same-sex couples and transgender individuals have made their integration and representation in today's society much easier.

Meanwhile, Eurovision - although an increasingly controversial contest - also contributes to the visibility of artists from the LGBT community.

In 1998, Dana International made history as the first transgender winner for Israel - an incredible achievement considering the lack of transgender representation at the time.

In 2007, Ukrainian drag queen Verka Serduchka (real name Andriy Mykhailovych Danylko) wowed the audience with the song Dancing Lasha Tumbai, finishing in second place in the grand final.

In fact, drag art continued to be popular among Eurovision audiences when Conchita Wurst won the contest for Austria in 2014.

In 2013, Finland's contestant Krista Siegfrids kissed a dancer during her performance in the grand final as a protest against her government's rejection of same-sex marriage.

In a subsequent interview, Siegfrids said she only wanted to promote "love and tolerance".

Turkey left the contest in 2012, and the TRT television station stated that the prevalence of LGBT was a major cause of Turkey's withdrawal from the competition.