In the three-day training course during a sweltering week in Utrecht, activists from Amnesty International Hungary and Háttér learned and applied various communication techniques - from setting S.M.A.R.T. goals, to values-based framing, to the tricks of writing briefs for advertising agencies.

The organisations worked with a different facilitator each day: on the first day, Valentin Tóth, head of communications at Liberties, practiced applying the G.A.M.E. plan method to a public campaign, on the second day Israel Butler, head of messaging and narrative at Liberties, walked participants through value-based framing and on the third day campaign consultant Jasmin Scharrer demonstrated how to apply these principles when designing campaign materials.

Under Pressure

The workshop participants are in search of solutions to the current situation in Hungary, where the government has been spreading lies and hatred against people from certain groups, including people who are LGBTIQ+, as a strategy to rouse its own base and deflect blame for its own failings, like growing economic inequality.

For example, in 2021 the government passed legislation allowing it to censor teaching curricula and TV shows and books if they include portrayals of someone who is LGBTQI+. The legislation is deliberately vague and publishers, media and schools self-censor because they’re not sure how it will be interpreted. Even teachers and school psychologists face pressure to avoid LGBTQI+ discussions.

The Good News

On a positive note, Hungarian society is primed for change, providing fertile ground for our participants to launch their campaigns. Despite the increasing pressure on NGOs, more and more Hungarians seem resistant to the waves of government propaganda. According to the latest opinion polls, the general acceptance of the LGBTQI+ community in Hungarian society has continued to improve. More than half of Hungarians now have an LGBT friend, and 71% would have no problem with their child coming out.

Resources

• How not to talk about toxic laws: framing analysis (in Hungarian) about the anti-LGBTQI+ laws in Hungary
• Framing E-learning Course on Knowledge Hub (Liberties)
• From Freedom to Censorship: the consequences of the Hungarian Propaganda Law (Amnesty International Hungary)
• Social attitudes towards LGBTQI issues in Hungary. November 202 (Háttér)