LGBTQ+ Rsians fleeg Kreml’s anti-gay propaganda seek safe haven LA – Daily News

russian anti gay

The numbers e om newly released data om the Pew Rearch Center, which surveyed Rsians on their moral attus sprg 2013. Jt eight months before the gam, Rsia's ernmental body, the Duma, passed a law makg illegal to distribute homosexual "propaganda" to mors, which clus stagg gay pri events and advotg for gay rights. On the openg day of the Olympics (Feb. 7), police arrted at least 14 gay rights activists St. Petersburg and Mosw, acrdg to news reports. It's unclear what charg the activists may face, as Rsia also bans unapproved protts.

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WHY RSIA IS SO ANTI-GAY

Close to 75 percent of Rsians say beg gay is morally unacceptable, a new survey fds. * russian anti gay *

The urt found that the law “served no legimate public tert, ” rejectg suggtns that public bate on LGBT issu uld fluence children to bee homosexual, or that threatened public morals. Speakg before Put signed the bill to the law on Monday, Tanya Loksha, associate Europe and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch said: “The 2013 ‘gay propaganda’ law was an unabashed example of polil homophobia, and the new draft legislatn amplifi that broar and harsher ways.

Nearly three-quarters of Rsians believe that homosexually is morally unacceptable, more than disapprove of other hot-button issu such as extramaral affairs, gamblg and numbers e om newly released data om the Pew Rearch Center, which surveyed Rsians on their moral attus sprg 2013. Jt eight months before the gam, Rsia's ernmental body, the Duma, passed a law makg illegal to distribute homosexual "propaganda" to mors, which clus stagg gay pri events and advotg for gay law also bans foreign same-sex upl om adoptg Rsian the openg day of the Olympics (Feb.

[5 Myths About Gay People Debunked]History of anti-gay attusUnrstandg Rsia's wispread gay sentiment requir a look back, said Tatiana Mikhailova, a senr stctor of Rsian Studi at the Universy of Colorado, Boulr. In 1835, Czar Nicholas I extend the ban on male same-sex relatnships to revolutnari threw out the Czarist legal and drew up their own, which did not crimalize homosexualy. Joseph Stal, who nsolidated power over the 1920s, and his secret police appotee, Genrikh Yagoda, drafted a new law penalizg homosexuals, whom they portrayed as spi and sundrels.

WHY RSIA TURNED AGAST THE GAYS

Young mothers Yana and Yaroslava don’t want to leave Rsia wh their 6-year-old son. But they fear a harsh new anti-gay law passed by Rsian lawmakers will leave them ltle choice. * russian anti gay *

"Where gays are allowed, pedophilia will soon flourish, " says Rsian Orthodox prit Sergei Rybko a new BBC documentary, "Hunted, " released this month, that explor vlence toward Rsian Rsian Orthodox Church is a major driver of anti-gay public opn, Mikhailova said, but there is a paradox at most untri, religsy is lked to anti-gay attus. Few Rsians say relign is central to their liv; the untry sr on par wh many Wtern European untri terms of lack of religsy, but only 9 percent of Rsians say homosexualy is acceptable the new survey.

Another 9 percent say homosexualy is not a moral issue, and 72 percent say beg gay is parison, 69 percent of Rsians say extramaral affairs are unacceptable, 62 percent disapprove of gamblg, and 44 percent say abortn is immoral.

[6 Thgs Rsians Thk Are More Acceptable Than Beg Gay]While the average Rsian may not attend church equently or pray fervently, the Orthodox Church still holds sway over public opn, Mikhailova said. 3, a urt eastern Rsia sentenced three men to between ne and 12 years prison each for the beatg and stabbg ath of a man they believed to be gay, one of several recently reported crim allegedly motivated by anti-gay sentiment.

RSIA: EXPAND 'GAY PROPAGANDA' BAN PROGRS TOWARD LAW

Rsian society remaed wily homophobic, and there were many who saw gays and lbians as an evable and evil Wtern import, but there were other thgs to worry about — reverg om the llapse of a polil-enomic system, clawg out of poverty, alg wh the explosn of vlence that engulfed a untry sudnly flowg wh sh and then me Vladimir spent the first two terms of his princy, om 2000 to 2008, lg wh no iology.

ANTI-GAY PROPAGANDA VIO GO VIRAL RSIA

" Th the law passed by the Duma jt hours after the anti-gay law was passed, makg "sultg relig believers" an offense punishable by up to three years send easit thg has been to monize the "Other, " creatg an ternal enemy for everyone to fear. And fally, allows Rsia to do what do bt the days: prent self as Not The is no accint that Rsia is strippg away gay rights as (popular and legal) support for gay marriage the U. "I thk the most ridiculo qutns e up durg the y of an empire, " said Anton Krasovsky, a proment Rsian journalist recently fired for beg gay, when asked why the "gay qutn" had sudnly emerged Rsia.

Petersburg who left Rsia after his parents threatened to sue his therapist who backed him receivg hormone therapy; and Ivan, 18, who is gay, half Rsian and half Ukraian, and “didn’t want to kill people.

‘OUR MERE EXISTENCE IS ILLEGAL.’ AS MOSW TOUGHENS ANTI-GAY LAW, LGBTQ RSIANS FEAR FOR THE FUTURE

“My parents are very nservative and they don’t believe gay people should exist, ” said Max, who didn’t disclose his last name for fear of retaliatn agast his parents who live St.

RSIA TO GAYS: SHUT UP AND DISAPPEAR

Although is not illegal to be an LGBTQ+ person Rsia, a ago the Kreml passed a so-lled “gay propaganda law” banng the distributn of rmatn about gay relatnships among mors. The proposals prohib sharg posive and even ntral rmatn about lbian, gay, bisexual, and transgenr (LGBT) people, and publicly displayg non-heterosexual orientatns, wh hefty f for nonpliance.

THE ORTHODOX CHURCH’S ROLE RSIA’S ANTI-GAY LAWS

The origal “gay propaganda” ban, troduced 2013, purported to protect children om “propaganda, ” broadly fed to mean any posive or ntral pictn or discsn of non-heterosexual relatns.

WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT RSIA’S SO-CALLED ‘GAY PROPAGANDA’ BILL

The draft legislatn classifi displays of non-heterosexual relatns or orientatn as “rmatn harmful to children’s health and velopment” and provis that webs and other onle sourc hostg rmatn about lbian, gay, bisexual, and transgenr (LGBT) people n be blocked.

PUT’S ANTI-GAY WAR ON UKRAE

“The 2013 ‘gay propaganda’ law was an unabashed example of polil homophobia, and the new draft legislatn amplifi that broar and harsher ways, ” said Tanya Loksha, associate Europe and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch. In one episo of the highly-acclaimed HBO seri The Whe Lot, a Rsian streamg service changed the word "gay" to "man", eded a towel onto one male character's bare backsi and leted a gay sex scene, jt days after the law was ptn, The book Shattered, about the romance between two men, has been heavily redacted RsiaBooks, too, are beg censored.

*BEAR-MAGAZINE.COM* RUSSIAN ANTI GAY

Rsia: Expand 'Gay Propaganda' Ban Progrs Toward Law | Human Rights Watch .

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