Russia Proves its Atrocious Record on LGBT Rights. Again.

by Michael Jones · 2009-05-16 07:41:00 UTC
Topics:

Russia LGBT Violence

Russia is one of the least safe places for LGBT people in the entire world. Despite the fact that the country decriminalized homosexuality more than fifteen years ago, violent demonstrations and crackdowns against LGBT rights seem to happen almost every year.

This year is, sadly, no different.

Today, dozens of LGBT rights supporters demonstrated in Moscow to call for equal rights.  The rally was timed with Russia's hosting of the Eurovision Song Contest, a pop culture phenomenon in Europe that is drawing thousands of people to Moscow (many of them LGBT) this weekend.  How did Russia respond?

With a violent crackdown and lots of arrests of LGBT folks.

Per David Nowak at the AP:

Riot police violently broke up several gay rights demonstrations in Moscow on Saturday, hauling away scores of protesters hours before the Russian capital hosted a major international pop music competition....

Police seized gay rights protesters as well as some members of religious and nationalist groups that staged counter-demonstrations. They also took away gay rights activists for simply talking to reporters, and ripped the bra and shirt off one female protester.

At least two foreign activists were also detained, British LGBT rights activist Peter Tatchell and American activist Andy Thayer, co-founder of the Gay Liberation Network.  Tatchell, who was assaulted two years ago during a gay rights demonstration in Russia, told the AP that this year's crackdown on LGBT rights shows that Russia still hasn't progressed in how it values people's basic human rights.  "This shows the Russian people are not free!  The arrests were done in a very violent, aggressive manner.  We believe the reaction of the Moscow police was totally unjustified," Tatchell is reported as saying.

Activists are now calling on contestants in tonight's Eurovision Song Contest to publicly denounce LGBT violence from the stage.  Will they do so?  Let's hope.  Russia atrocious record on LGBT rights needs to be exposed for what it is - violent and extreme.

Michael Jones is a Change.org Editor. He has worked in the field of human rights communications for a decade, most recently for Harvard Law School.
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