Lesbophobia: Hidden Forms of Gender-Based Violence in Bulgaria
2026 Report
What happens when misogyny and homophobia intersect? Do lesbian, bi and queer women face specific forms of discrimination and violence? The answer is yes, and this phenomenon has a name: lesbophobia.
Do we talk about it enough, especially in Bulgaria? Why does it matter that we name it? And what does it look like in everyday life? Our new report sets out to explore these questions.
About the research
What happens when misogyny and homophobia intersect? Do lesbian, bi and queer women face specific forms of discrimination and violence? The answer is yes, and this phenomenon has a name: lesbophobia.
Do we talk about it enough, especially in Bulgaria? Why does it matter that we name it? And what does it look like in everyday life? Our new report sets out to explore these questions.
Key findings
Experiences of harassment and violence
Among survey respondents, 93% had experienced at least one form of harassment or violence in their lifetime. The most common were verbal abuse (79%) and sexual violence (68%), followed by online harassment (49%), threats (44%) and physical violence (39%).
Reporting
Despite this, 8 in 10 respondents had never reported what happened to an institution.
Gender non-conformity
Participants pointed to not fitting gender norms as one of the main reasons they are targeted. Gender non-conformity is often read as a sign of being lesbian or bi.
Visibility and safety
Many participants wanted to be visible as queer but felt this could come at the cost of safety. The greater visibility that masculine presentation affords can also be a magnet for hostility. On the other hand, lesbians and bisexuals may feel that the relative invisibility of femininity can help them go under the radar. However, this may not only force them to silence an important part of themselves, but can also heighten expectations to perform heterosexuality, sometimes dangerously so. In both cases, misogyny and homophobia combine to punish lesbians and bisexuals for deviance from what is expected of women in what participants feel is a highly gendered society.
Across these experiences, the report finds that misogyny and homophobia work together. Lesbians, bi women and non-binary people are penalised for not meeting expectations of how they should look and behave. This mirrors international evidence collected by the UN, which found that conforming to gender norms is often a condition for women's access to public life.
The report concludes with recommendations for change based on these findings.