Online Access to Hate: Homophobia Among EU Youth

By Jeremy Schaefer

14 February 2025

Online hostility is accessible everywhere and to everyone, particularly the youth. 1 in 2 EU citizens between the ages of 16 and 29 reported that they had encountered hateful messaging online, and nearly 1 in 3 believed that these individuals were targeted because of their sexual orientation. Why is that? Does access to online hate speech indicate a country’s inclusivity toward the LGBTQ+ community? How important is a country’s digitalization in spreading online homophobia? 

The answer is not so straightforward. But, to try and better understand online hate, the European Union conducted a study investigating its accessibility to young people in 2023. The study specifically analyzed individuals from across the continent who had used the internet within the past three months, and data was collected from all EU countries except Czechia, Italy, Spain, and Ireland.

With regard to the EU as a whole, 1 in 2 respondents reported that they had encountered hateful messages online. Furthermore, over half of the studied member states reported percentages over 50%. These degrading messages were particularly directed toward groups of people protected by existing non-discrimination laws or because of their political beliefs.  

Estonia reported the highest share of respondents at 69% while Croatia reported the lowest rate of 24%. 

Though this data is from 2023, online hostility has plagued the continent for years. To try and combat this, the EU officially enacted the Digital Services Act (DSA) in 2022, establishing new approaches to protect individuals, specifically minors, online while simultaneously promoting innovation, growth, and outreach across the European market. Although the legislation had just begun to be enacted at the time of this study’s publishing, it indicates its importance across Europe as a whole. 

In addition to asking about overall encounters with online hostility, the survey indicated whether or not the respondents believed the hate speech to be a result of an individual's identity. The survey included specific categorizations for hostility based on: sexual orientation, sex, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, or due to “other personal characteristics.” 

To investigate one of these categorical breakdowns more intensively, I have selected online hostility based on sexual orientation (i.e. hate speech toward members of the LGBTQ+ community). The results, in all honesty, are not surprising. Similarly to the study’s composite results, 46% of Estonians reported that they believed the individuals or groups were targeted because of their sexual orientation. Furthermore, Croatians reported the lowest score at less than 1%. 

Map Source: Eurostat

These results led me to consider a number of factors that could help explain some of these drastic disparities. For example, does Croatia’s incredibly low percentage indicate its widespread inclusivity and social acceptance of homosexuality and other sexual minorities? To what extent, if at all, do specific statewide legal protections impact results? 

When considering Estonia and Croatia, the two countries that reported polar opposite results, I first investigated the status of same-sex marriage in both countries. Though same-sex marriage is legal in Estonia as of 2024, this national policy had no effect on the survey’s results because they came from the year prior. The same holds true for Croatia, which has only legalized same-sex civil unions. 

From there, I dug deeper into legal protections for the queer community in both Estonia and Croatia. According to Equaldex, an online collaborative information base researching global LGBTQ+ rights, both Estonia and Croatia have fairly similar statutes for their citizens; the main difference, however, is that the former ranks 42nd while the latter ranks 54th for total equality globally. 

Thus, it appears likely that this large disparity in online hostile messaging toward LGBTQ+ individuals in Estonia and Croatia is not due to state-supported policies in each country. 

Perhaps then, is reported online hostility more present in Estonia, toward queer individuals and in general, because the country is more digitized than Croatia? Are Estonians accessing social platforms considerably more than Croatians? In the Commission’s 2022 Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI), which ranks overall digitalization – access to, connectivity with, and specific use of digital resources – from member states, Estonia ranked 9th while Croatia ranked 21st. 

Though Estonia yet again ranks higher than Croatia, its direct applicability to accessing online hate messages toward the queer community cannot be linked. If there was a perfect correlation between a country’s DESI score and reported access to online hostility based on sexual orientation, for example, Finland would have reported the highest percentages in the youth online hostility study, not Estonia. 

Although I cannot provide a definitive answer as to why societies reported such drastically different levels of encountering online hostility toward queer individuals, there appears to be a strong correlation between a country’s digitalization and its reported homophobic targeting. Though much more research is needed on this hypothesis, the data reflects the utmost importance of protecting youth, especially those from pre-existing marginalized communities, everywhere. The DSA is working to ensure this; but, for now, it is too early to evaluate its effectiveness. 

As is reflected throughout the data, online hostility reaches every corner of European society. It remains in society's best interest to minimize these messages’ pervasiveness, to protect communities from accessing them, and to ensure the youth are supported and validated in their identities. 

Sources:

Equaldex. “Croatia.” https://www.equaldex.com/region/croatia

Equaldex. “Estonia.” https://www.equaldex.com/region/estonia

European Commission. “Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI) 2022.” Publication 28 July 2022. https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/library/digital-economy-and-society-index-desi-2022

Eurostat. “Individuals - encountering hostile or degrading online messages.” 2023. https://doi.org/10.2908/ISOC_CI_HM. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/isoc_ci_hm__custom_12224713/bookmark/table?lang=en&bookmarkId=6a9296b0-5560-4adc-aebf-16149ff4a2b9.