Same-sex couple traffic lights taken down by far-right party
The Austrian city of Linz has decided to scrap their LGBT friendly traffic lights.
Markus Hein, Linz’s traffic official and member of the far-right Freedom Party, told AFP that “Traffic lights are for traffic,
“and should not be misused to impart advice on how to live your life.”
He went on to say that the lights were “completely unnecessary,” because gay rights have advanced significantly in the country.
The Freedom Party have been making gains in the country’s opinion polls in recent years,
They are now the third biggest party in the Austrian national council after securing 34 seats at the last general election in 2013.
The lights were introduced to Vienna originally when the city hosted Eurovision back in May.
A spokesperson at the time said the lights aimed to “present Vienna as an open-minded city.”
They were later introduced to Linz and Salzburg due to the popularity of the lights in the capitol city.
Austrian city councillor Maria Vassilakou made the lights permanent in Vienna after Facebook group gained over 20,000 likes in favour of keeping the lights.
Far right groups have been making gains in several countries in Europe, most recently in France where the Far-right National Front party stormed to victory in French regional elections.
