Russia has instigated a law banning ‘gay propaganda’ within the country. Signed into the country’s constitution by President Vladmir Putin, this ruling means that anyone caught saying the word ‘gay’ on the street could be arrested, fined and imprisoned, allegedly to protect the children of Russia from being influenced by homosexuality.
This law has not only marginalised the LGBT community of Russia into second-class citizens, but pictures have emerged of gay people in Russia being beaten and bleeding, as well as stories of torture and even murder. As governments around the world turn a blind eye, the fight back against the Russian authorities is starting in a gay bar near you now…
On Saturday 29th June this year London celebrated Gay Pride, as a huge parade passed down Oxford and Regent Streets and the gay bars of Soho and beyond waved their rainbow flags above the door, packed with proud revellers. On the same day in St Petersburg, forty gay rights demonstrators were pelted with eggs and rocks by Russian nationalists and detained by local police for trying to hold a Gay Pride rally in the city. The next day, Sunday June 30th, Putin signed into law the anti-gay propaganda bill.
Since this passing the news that has come out of Russia in relation to its treatment of the LGBT community within the country has steadily got worse. The contemporary culture website Buzzfeed, often more renowned for its satirical articles, posted a serious link entitled ‘36 Photos From Russia That Everyone Needs to See’, some of which have been reprinted here. The 36 photos it publicised came from that attempted Gay Pride rally in St Petersburg and other rallies or parades the LGBT community has tried to hold. As you can see, each depicts violence or brutality committed against gay citizens, either by their fellow citizens or their country’s police force.
In some cases the brutality against LGBT citizens is a lot worse than can be shown in the images here. Vigilante attacks against gay people on the streets have increased and there are two reports of young men being murdered for being or simply suspected of being gay. In both cases these men were tortured before they were killed, one sodomised with beer bottles and the other having his body burned. Just last week, on the 26th July, a story broke of neo-Nazi groups in the country luring gay teens into traps through dating websites, and torturing them then forcing them to come out in humiliating videos to send to their families.
Europe needs to follow Iceland’s example and start putting pressure on Moscow.”
But this news is not going unnoticed. On 18th July, Iceland was the first country to announce it could potentially cut ties with Moscow over the passage of this anti-gay law. Many within the UK have urged David Cameron to follow suit. And, if international diplomatic pressure comes to no avail, gay bars across the world are taking matters into their own hands by placing economic pressure on Russian industry, first by banning Russian vodkas. Gay rights activist Dan Savage called for a boycott on 25th July, and since then bars from Canada, USA and UK have responded.
At the time of writing (26th July) London’s Ku Bar, G-A-Y and The Shadow Lounge are the London brands supporting the ban in recognition of the plight of LGBT citizens in Russia. Tolis Simpson, manager of the Shadow Lounge, said, “We have to take a stand where they might notice. Money. What set me off was having an argument with this Russian girl who said to me: there are no gays in Russia. The women are too beautiful.”
G-A-Y owner Jeremy Joseph says that this move is not merely about affecting the Russian economy, “It’s about a show of solidarity. Every year we have a new generation of young guys on the gay scene in London and they don’t realise how lucky they are. Both Manchester and Brighton Prides need to say something about this and Manchester should reconsider its twin-ship with St Petersburg. Also, Europe needs to follow Iceland’s example and start putting pressure on Moscow.”
Ku Bar owner Gary Henshaw spoke of how he visited Moscow in March 2012: “I attended a gay club where I watched the Eurovision Song Contest with hundreds of gay Muscovites. The next morning I went looking for the planned and banned Gay Pride march. I failed to find it and I was quite angry at the time, thinking where were all the LGBT crowds from the previous evening? Now with hindsight I realise that gay Russians live in fear of the authorities… I will not visit Russia again unless it revokes these laws, or unless it is to show solidarity with our LGBT brothers and sisters. One thing I can do is to resolve to boycott Russian brands.”
With Russia hosting the Winter Olympics 2014 the world’s spotlight is increasingly centred on its LGBT rights record, and there are many worried about whether gay tourists to the country will be arrested under this law. Already four Dutch men have been arrested in Murmansk for breaching it. Perhaps banning Russian vodka in gay bars won’t make any real impact on the country’s ailing economy, but our message is clear: LGBT citizens of Russia, you are not alone, and we are standing with you.
