Hi all! I’m Guido Schmitz and I’m glad to be a new contributor to Out Front. I’m located in Frankfurt, Germany, basically in the very heart of good old Europe. Once a month I’ll aim to add a European perspective to this blog, highlighting similarities as well as differences in how LGBT topics are dealt with in the US and in Europe.

It wasn’t hard to decide what topics I would turn to in my first entry. It’s of course about Guido. Nope, don’t worry it’s going to be a self-promoting PR stunt here. Ever since the general elections in Germany last October we are happy to have the world’s only out secretary of the state, Guido Westerwelle. While Germany has quite a few high-ranking gay and out politicians, such as the majors of Berlin and Hamburg, a gay secretary of the state certainly adds a new dimension.  Ever since Mr. Westerwelle came into office the entire German media has discussed how he would manage his trips abroad to countries where homosexuality is quite an issue, especially in the Middle East.

The debates in the media came to a high when Westerwelle travelled for the first time to Saudi Arabia, Japan and China in January this year. All three countries are very different from each other which holds equally true for how LGBT life takes place there. While in Saudi Arabia homosexuality is still prosecuted and may even result in a death sentence, the two Asian countries have a more relaxed attitude. While Japan has a vibrant LGBT scene, LGBT politicians are still perceived as somewhat odd there, though. And a more relaxed view on the LGBT community is only developing now in China – with still a long way to go.

This being a LGBT communications blog I would think two aspects are most important in this context. How did the media perceive Mr. Westerwelle’s performance in these three countries and secondly how powerful of a global spokesperson can one man be by speaking out for human and, thus, LGBT rights?

There isn’t much controversy about the first aspect. All but a few media thought he performed extremely well. Tabloids as well as the leading daily quality newspapers all agreed that he did the best he could in each unique cultural circumstance. He used a warm welcome in Saudi Arabia to emphasize the importance of human rights at the press conference together with the Saudi Arabian secretary of state. He took his partner, Michael Mronz, to the Meijin shrine, one of Shinto religion’s most important sanctuaries, and both participated in a ceremony. It all seemed very natural and he didn’t shy away from speaking a plain language when it came to human rights. When the Chinese authorities decided to stop the first “Mr. Gay China” event at the very day of Mr. Westerwelle’s visit to Beijing, he openly called for protection of minorities in China. This provoked a harsh reaction by the Chinese government that noted interference with internal affairs.

Regarding the second aspect the picture is more ambivalent. A Swiss newspaper, Basler Zeitung, looked at the first 100 days of Mr. Westerwelle being in office and how well he performed so far. They came to the conclusion that even if he does not want it himself, by speaking out for human rights openly when he is abroad, he will gain the role of a world ambassador for homosexuals.

This is quite a title they gave him and you are well advised to be skeptical. When the Saudi Arabian TV reported about Mr. Westerwelle’s state visit, his homosexuality or human rights was nothing the viewers were told about. A male secretary of the state living together with another man and not making a secret out of it? That story is something – with the exception of the sheiks – the 28 million people in Saudia Arabia still don’t know about.

Coming back to the two initial questions, has Mr. Westerwelle lived up to the expectations?

1. Mission accomplished with regard to speaking up for human and LGBT rights in difficult situations even when other national interests are at stake.
2. Mission still under way with regard to becoming a global spokesperson. It is one thing to stand up for the LGBT community but it is a completely different thing to be heard globally and especially by those who live in countries such as Uganda.

Have you heard of the proclaimed global LGBT ambassador Guido Westerwelle so far? Do you think that a global ambassador can at all be successful? Or does every community need its own spokesperson rooted in its specific culture?

Picture by Nevil5