Rémy Bonny appointed as Executive Director of Forbidden Colours vzw/asbl

On April 1st 2021, Rémy Bonny starts as Executive Director at Forbidden Colours vzw/asbl. As a political scientist, Bonny has been a champion of LGBTI rights in the European Union in recent years.

Forbidden Colours vzw/asbl collects money for the first-ever LGBTI-fund that is managed by the King Baudouin Foundation. With the Fund, Forbidden Colours aims to support strategic LGBTI projects in the European Union, with a focus on education, health, integration and work.

According to Bonny, the need for Forbidden Colours is very high: “Over the past decades we have achieved a lot as a LGBTI community. Yet, we notice that the equality we have achieved in the EU is very fragile. The presumably homophobic murder of David P. in Belgium, the “LGBT Free Zones” in Poland or the ban on legal recognition of trans and intersex people in Hungary are examples of this. “

“It is time for the next step in our fight for equality. As a LGBTI movement, we need to become more sustainable and self-sufficient in Europe. It is my intention to achieve that with Forbidden Colours, ”says Bonny enthusiastically.

In recent years, Rémy Bonny has become one of the main voices in the debate for better legal protection and a more equal society for LGBTI people in the European Union. As an expert, he traveled the world to raise awareness among policymakers, organizations and academics about the political situation of the European LGBTI community. International media, such as TIME, Le Monde and the EUobserver, already paid attention to his work. Bonny is also a popular speaker. On the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising in New York City, Bonny was the only European activist to speak at the official commemoration, alongside big names such as Mayor Bill De Blasio, activist Emma Gonzalez and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand.

Spokesperson Peter de Caluwe is very pleased with the appointment of Bonny: “We are very pleased that with the arrival of Rémy, we as Forbidden Colours vzw/asbl can really start to attract attention and raise funds for the LGBTI movement in Europe. If we want discrimination and inequality with regard to LGBTI persons to disappear at work, in education and health care, we as a society must invest in this structurally. ”.

The Forbidden Colours Fund was founded in 2019 by 6 leading Belgian LGBTI persons and has already supported 7 projects in Belgium and Poland for more than 21,000 euros. The Fund’s six founders also make up the board of directors of Forbidden Colours vzw/asbl:

• The Noble Purpose Entrepreneur Olivier Onghena-t Hooft is chairman.
• Commercial director at a large automotive company in Belgium Gabriel Goffoy is vice-chairman.
• Director of La Monnaie Peter de Caluwe is spokesperson.
• Founder of the Brussels Art22 Gallery Didier Brouwers is secretary.
• Social media expert and Executive Creative Director Benoît Vancauwenberghe is the communication specialist.
• Architect Gregory Hye is responsible for the relationships between Forbidden Colours vzw/asbl and the King Baudouin Foundation.