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Author: Yitsz Neurink, factchecker and journalist at Nieuwscheckers, the fact-checking organisation of Leiden University.

Abstract: This article explores narratives in disinformation about LGBTQ+ people and migrants that circulated and was fact checked in the Netherlands and Flanders. The disinformation often focuses on the othering of these groups and the underlying narratives push broader conspiracy theories about supposed elites with an anti-western agenda.

Keywords: disinformation, narrative, LGBTQ+, migration, factchecking

In 2023 the fourth government of former Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte fell partially due to false information spread by former Minister of Justice and Security Dilan Yeşilgöz about migration. This had to do with the possibility for migrants to bring their families to the Netherlands from their country of origin after they arrive in the Netherlands alone. In certain situations, family members would be able to bring their own family members with them as well. Yeşilgöz claimed this happened thousands of times, while in reality, it happened less than eight hundred times over a four year period. The claim however played a role in her party, the People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD), wanting to limit this right that migrants have.

Under the proposed changes, the rights of war refugees would also be limited, which was unacceptable to coalition partners D66 and ChristenUnie, and as a result of this, the government collapsed.

This is an example of disinformation having political consequences by serving a broader narrative about migration. To strengthen fact-checking activities and zoom into circulating narratives that go beyond checking only individual claims, fact-checking organization Nieuwscheckers of Leiden University, with the support of  the Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision, mapped the overarching narratives pushed by online mis- and disinformation, particularly around contentious political topics like migration. This was achieved by collecting factchecks from the Belgium-Netherlands Digital Media and Disinformation Observatory’s (BENEDMO) factcheck database about several topics and categorizing them by narrative, which were both taken from existing literature about disinformation in Europe and identified by the author when there was no corresponding narrative in the literature.

The factchecks collected were written in Dutch, covering both the Netherlands and Flanders, with claims found to be untrue, partially untrue or unfounded. Through this four Deep Dives were produced, examining disinformation about migration, climate change, the LGBTQ+ community and images of recent wars (Russo-Ukranian war, Gaza war, Twelve-Day War and the 2026 Iran war). The project mapped out a broader view of what disinformation circulates online that goes beyond individual fact-checking articles, giving more insight into which messages disinformation tries to promote.

Intersecting narratives

Of the four Deep Dives, those on migration and the LGBTQ+ community specifically target  identity-based disinformation and these intersect and are similar in several ways. Both migrants and people in the LGBTQ+ community are associated with various negative traits to “other” their identities and both are accused of receiving advantages from Western institutions in different forms, depending on the group. The goal is partially to emphasize how different these groups are from the perceived ‘standard’: ethnically European (white), heterosexual and cisgender.

There is also a disinformation narrative where the LGBTQ+ community and migrants directly intersect. In this narrative,  European nations are portrayed as LGBTQ+-friendly, in contrast to  the cultures migrants originate from which are depicted as uniformly hostile to the LGBTQ+ community and, as a result, backward. Disinformation exaggerates or fabricates instances where migrants or foreign cultures oppose or take actions against LGBTQ+ individuals. LGBTQ+ rights are framed as part of national identity and this is weaponized against migrants, a phenomenon that gender studies scholar Jasbir Puar named homonationalism in 2007.

Conspiracy theories can also intersect, rooted in the idea that an elite is trying to eradicate white people. Within the great replacement theory, this elite seeks to replace white populations with migrants from other, non-Western cultures, under the assumption that these groups have higher birth rates. That same elite is claimed to promote LGBTQ+-identities through the ‘gay agenda’, to discourage white people from having children, accelerating their supposed eradication.

Regarding the spread of such disinformation narratives, it is notable that they often originate from and are initially spread by far right political factions, obscure or alternative media websites or specific civic organisations. These narratives can become ‘mainstreamed’ when adopted by centrist politicians or amplified by larger, more mainstream news outlets. The narratives may then be framed as one side of a broader debate and presented as legitimately as, for example, scientific knowledge.

Disinformation narratives about migration

Regarding migration specifically, three main narratives were identified, each ascribing negative qualities to migrants or people with a migration background. In the Netherlands, the latter refers to individuals with at least one of the parents born abroad. In disinformation, these groups are often portrayed as violent and unclean, as a drain on the economy and as a threat to Western cultural identity.

The overarching theme is that migrants and their descendants are depicted as individuals with values that are, at best, vastly different from Western values and at worst, fundamentally opposed to them. In disinformation, they are often framed as spreaders of disease, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as inherently dangerous and violent. This portrayal is reinforced, for example, by manipulating crime statistics or circulating visual evidence of alleged violent incidents involving migrants.

Additionally,  migrants are also often portrayed as lazy and deceitful individuals who come to the Netherlands and Flanders under the guise of seeking refuge, but are, in reality, “fortune seekers”, aiming to exploit welfare systems or favorable economic conditions. This narrative is spread by exaggerating how expensive housing migrants is, overstating the luxury of their   accommodations,  or falsely suggesting that migrants can easily return to their (often dangerous) countries of origin, for example by taking vacations there.

Disinformation portraying migrants as a threat to Western cultural identity often highlights specific cultural differences. Often the message is framed as host countries, like the Netherlands or Belgium, having to adjust their ways to those of migrants. This rhetoric ultimately fuels the conspiracy theory known as “the great replacement theory”, which claims that foreign cultures will completely replace Western culture.

Elements of the other narratives also intersect with this theory. Specifically, it claims that  leftist and Jewish elites are intentionally bringing migrants to the West to replace the native white population, which is why they are portrayed as willing to spend a lot of money on migrant relocation. Additionally, migrants are also implicitly depicted as inherently inferior to the white population, reinforcing stereotypes of them as violent and carriers of disease.

Disinformation narratives about the LGBTQ+ community

Disinformation targeting the LGBTQ+ community in the Netherlands and Flanders primarily focuses on the alleged promotion of the ‘gay agenda’ by institutions and policy makers. There is a focus on frivolous, costly policies that support the LGBTQ+ community or pride, and are undermining national identity. A common example is the placement of pride flags  substituting national flags or appearing alongside national symbols. There is also a conspiracy theory variant claiming that the gay agenda is deliberately being pushed by elites for financial gain or as part of a broader political project.

Some disinformation also tries to exaggerate the size of the movement against the LGBTQ+ community or the prevalence of anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment. This is done through fabricated statements from celebrities or ordinary individuals speaking out against the community.

Another  main disinformation narrative about the LGBTQ+ community in the Netherlands and Flanders involves ascribing various negative traits to LGBTQ+ people, accusing them of pedophilia or claiming that LGBTQ+ people seek to to ‘indoctrinate’ or ‘infect’ children into adopting LGBTQ+ identities. Another prevalent negative stereotype in disinformation is mental instability, often depicted through (gun) violence and miscellaneous strange or erratic behavior. Much of this disinformation specifically targets transgender individuals, repeating arguments and disinformation used against gay people in the 1980s.

On top of that, being LGBTQ+ in itself is sometimes framed as negative or scandalous. This type of disinformation often involves famous people being ‘accused’ of being LGBTQ+, such as through so-called ‘transvestigating’ i.e. claiming that individuals are transgender based on certain physical characteristics.

This goes back to the othering identity-based disinformation does, in this case emphasizing that migrants and LGBTQ+ people are different from what is considered ‘normal’. The underlying message often seems to be an open call for discrimination. This is problematic given people with a migration background or muslims in the Netherlands often face discrimination and given that discrimination and violence against LGBTQ+ people in the Netherlands has been increasing in recent years. Disinformation in such cases only adds to the existing problems.