Based on the latest data from the Rainbow Map, produced annually by ILGA Europe, Serbia exhibits a 35% level of respect for LGBT human rights in 2023. While modest, this figure exceeds the level of several European Union member states, including Italy, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Cyprus, Lithuania, and Latvia. How is it possible that Serbia, which is only a candidate for EU membership, has a higher level of respect for LGBT rights than some members of the European Union, which considers itself a global model for the full implementation of LGBT human rights? Koen Slootmaeckers’ book, Coming In: Sexual Politics and EU Accession in Serbia, provides a detailed and multidimensional answer to this question. Much like the rainbow map itself is problematic because it only considers the legal and political elements of LGBT rights protection, Slootmaeckers’ book also focuses its key argument on a critique of the mainstream Europeanization literature, which assumes that top-down compliance with legal and institutional rules will inevitably lead to an almost automatic social transformation. Instead, the author proposes a paradigm shift toward a fluid and relational conceptualization of Europeanization.
Slootmaeckers examines in detail the interaction between LGBT rights and EU accession process in Serbia. Drawing on feminist and queer critiques of the traditional top-down understanding of Europeanization, the author reconceptualizes it as a “negotiated transformation”—a dynamic process in which EU policies and norms are continuously negotiated, redefined, and changed by both parties involved. Slootmaeckers proposes a relational approach to the Europeanization process that emphasizes the intrinsic link between the EU and the candidate countries. The relational nature of this process is convincingly demonstrated in the empirical part of the book, where the political outcomes of the Serbian accession process are shown to be in constant flux. The author thus takes a commendable step beyond classical Europeanization studies by unpacking the complexity of Serbia's relationship with the EU, thus also moving away from a simplistic account of the catch-up process with western Europe.
The empirical course of the book provides convincing evidence for its theoretical foundations. Through careful analysis of the passage of anti-discrimination laws in Serbia and the history of Pride parade bans, the book underscores the importance of societal barriers that undermine the translation of policy into meaningful change.
One of the book's most important contributions lies in its conceptualization of “tactical Europeanization.” Slootmaeckers applies this concept to the historical development of Pride parades in Serbia, providing a lens through which to examine the manipulative use of Pride symbolism for political purposes. Through a careful examination of the Serbian government's strategy, the book exposes the dualistic nature of the Pride parade, both as a tool for international legitimacy and as a means of asserting domestic power. Slootmaeckers speaks of the Serbian government's “double-speak” and unravels a deeply paradoxical narrative: Serbia's commitment to LGBT-friendly norms externally while aligning itself with opposing nationalist values and Orthodox Church norms at home. The meticulous unpacking of this dual strategy is one of the most important contributions of Slootmaeckers's research and a compelling critique of the prevailing top-down approach and outcome-based interpretations in Europeanization studies.
Drawing on an impressive mix of interviews, document analysis, and participant observation in Serbia, and by addressing the multi-layered nature of Europeanization and its impact on LGBT rights, Slootmaeckers creates a nuanced framework that reveals the strategic interplay between Serbia's nationalist politics and its commitment to Europeanization, reflected in its instrumental approach to LGBT rights. In doing so, Slootmaeckers convincingly demonstrates that the facade of progress fails to take into account the realities of life for marginalized individuals in a homophobic society. Examining the Pride parade, which has been transformed into a state-sanctioned spectacle devoid of transformative politics, is a powerful reminder of the complexities inherent in linking symbolism to concrete change.
The book is primarily intended for scholars studying Europeanization and its implications for advancing LGBT equality. It is also an extremely valuable document of the time, a critical record of a particular period of LGBT activism in Serbia. However, it is the “distant EU bureaucracy” that would benefit most from reading this book to think critically about phenomena such as tactical Europeanization and “what this ‘progress’ does for LGBT people” (184). The cover of the book, with a photo of an installation of four white walls with the inscription Naš život u četiri zida (Our Life Within the Four Walls), calls for serious reflection on what will be left behind by “ghost pride parades” and the mere checking of boxes when new anti-discrimination laws are passed without actual social changes and opportunities to implement them. Until then, LGBT people in Serbia (and elsewhere) may continue to stay in . . . instead of coming out.
