'Our mere existence is illegal.' As Mosw toughens anti-gay law, LGBTQ Rsians fear for the future | CNN

Contents:

• ‘OUR MERE EXISTENCE IS ILLEGAL.’ AS MOSW TOUGHENS ANTI-GAY LAW, LGBTQ RSIANS FEAR FOR THE FUTURE
• ANTI-GAY LAW TO PH RSIA’S LGBT COMMUNY ‘INTO THE SHADOWS,’ ACTIVISTS WARN
• RSIA: EXPAND 'GAY PROPAGANDA' BAN PROGRS TOWARD LAW
• RSIAN LAWMAKERS MOVE TO TOUGHEN ‘GAY PROPAGANDA’ LAW, BANNG ALL ADULTS OM ‘PROMOTG’ SAME-SEX RELATNSHIPS
• WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT RSIA’S SO-CALLED ‘GAY PROPAGANDA’ BILL
• ‘I’M AAID FOR MY FUTURE’: PROPOSED LAWS THREATEN GAY LIFE RSIA

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

The European Court of Human Rights led 2017 that the 2013 law is discrimatory, promot homophobia and vlat the European Conventn on Human Rights. 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.

Homosexualy was crimalized Rsia 1993, but homophobia and discrimatn is still rife. 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. In December 2022, Rsia expand s existg “gay propaganda” law to exert ntrol over public discsns and narrativ surroundg non-heterosexual relatnships and inti.

But they fear a harsh new anti-gay law passed by Rsian lawmakers will leave them ltle choice.

ANTI-GAY LAW TO PH RSIA’S LGBT COMMUNY ‘INTO THE SHADOWS,’ ACTIVISTS WARN

As the Kreml prepared to falize the expansn of the 2013 discrimatory anti-gay law, members of the LGBTQ muny Rsia told CNN they feared the uncerta future ahead. The measur clu g private acunts on social media, havg accs to a work of tsted people, sendg their son to a private krgarten where the fact a kid has two moms is ls likely to spark a homophobic reactn, and g a private hospal where they n ls risk of a doctor llg child protectn thori to make quiri about their fay set-up, they said. “As an thor of books that raise [the LGBTQ] topic, of urse, I am very ncerned about this, ” gay wrer Ksenia told CNN.

Sce the first law on “gay propaganda” passed 2013, Rsia has seen repeated crackdowns on the gay muny, most notably 2017 and aga 2019 the southern regn of Chechnya, where activists reported dozens of men and women were taed and some tortured and killed for their sexual orientatn, and no proper vtigatn followed. “This is not only an anti-gay law, this is also explicly an anti-trans law, ” said Vanya Solovey, an advocy and program officer for Eastern Europe and Central Asia at the trans rights group Transgenr Europe, referencg the part of the package that forbids the promotn of rmatn that uld e people to want to change their genr assigned at birth.

Rsia’s parliament has passed the third and fal readg of a law banng “LGBT propaganda” among all adults, as Mosw ramps up s nservative ph at home amid the war Ukrae that passed the ne-month mark on bill crimalis any act regard as an attempt to promote what Rsia lls “non-tradnal sexual relatns” – film, onle, advertisg or public – and expands on a notor 2013 law that banned “propaganda of nontradnal sexual relatns” among mors and was ed to ta gay rights the new law, dividuals n be fed up to 400, 000 roubl (£5, 400) and anisatns 5m roubl (£68, 500) for “propagandisg nontradnal sexual relatns”, while foreigners uld face up to 15 days’ arrt and expulsn om rights groups and LGBTQ+ activists say the extensn of the law means any act or public mentn of same-sex relatnships is functnally beg Rsian print, Vladimir Put, is expected to sign the bill the g the start of the war Ukrae, the Kreml has lnched a h effort to promote “tradnal valu”, wh the Rsian lear makg anti-gay rhetoric one of the rnerston of his polil a recent speech, Put acced the wt of “movg towards open satanism”, cg the promotn of gay and transgenr rights Europe as an example. In an earlier sermon, Kirill bizarrely blamed the untry’s vasn of Ukrae on gay pri rights activists on Thursday nmned the bill.

RSIA: EXPAND 'GAY PROPAGANDA' BAN PROGRS TOWARD LAW

“This law is part of an ongog homophobic ernment mpaign agast LGBTQ rights, ” said Kochetkov, who recently left Rsia. ”Kochetkov said the bill was also an attempt by the Kreml to look for ternal enemi and distract attentn om battlefield past newsletter promotnafter newsletter promotnHuman rights crics fear the law will be ed to close down pennt film and book ftivals, makg the topic of gay sexual orientatn sentially taboo Rsia.

”Over the past few years, Rsia has banned a number of proment LGBTQ+ rights groups, cludg the Sphere Foundatn, an anisatn that shed light on vlent anti-gay purg Chechnya. Kochetkov’s LGBT Network, wh a number of other human rights groups, has also received the “foreign agent” label, a Soviet-era tag signed to target groups the thori say receive “foreign fundg” and engage “polil activy” while the Rsian ernment has expand s attacks on LGBTQ+ rights, recent pollg has dited parts of Rsian society are beg more tolerant towards the gay muny, wh a 2019 poll showg that 68% of younger Rsians view the LGBTQ+ muny as “normal” July, Daria Kasatka, Rsia’s hight-ranked female tennis player, me out as gay, a move appld by fellow athlet and parts of the Rsian public.

Potg to the reactns, Kochetkov said the new law would not drastilly change the way Rsians viewed lbians, gay men, bisexuals and transgenr people. Ten years ago, a bill was passed banng so-lled "gay propaganda" relatn to children.

RSIAN LAWMAKERS MOVE TO TOUGHEN ‘GAY PROPAGANDA’ LAW, BANNG ALL ADULTS OM ‘PROMOTG’ SAME-SEX RELATNSHIPS

Human rights groups say that was followed by a rise vlent homophobic attacks Rsia. But the fear generated by the legislatn is already leadg to censorship: onle cemas have leted LGBT-themed films and TV seri and eded out gay scen.

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. The text has been redacted by the publisher, wh whole sectns replaced wh black of the -thors of the law, an openly homophobic natnalist lled Valy Milonov, agre to speak to me via violk. Activists attend a rally as they mark World Day Agast Homophobia and Transphobia Sat Petersburg on May 17, 2019.

In 2013, Rsia passed a law banng the "propaganda of homosexualy and pedophilia among mors. "And particularly where that base of support is close to relig views, there is a lot of crossover there that works for polil opportunists who are g official forms of homophobia to fe their polil stance. Anti-gay legislatn unr nsiratn by the Rsian parliament uld drive the untry’s embattled LGBT+ muny entirely unrground, activists and experts told The Mosw Tim, as the Kreml doubl-down on what lls “tradnal valu” amid the Ukrae war.

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

Rsia’s LGBT muny already fac vlence and margalizatn as a rult of wispread homophobia, which is often fueled by official rhetoric. The bill also seeks to legally equate rmatn about "non-tradnal liftyl" wh pornography and difi new offens cludg the “propaganda of pedophilia” — often nflated wh homosexualy by the thori — and enuragg mors to have a sex change. Petersburg LGBT group Pijama Friends who also works at a gay club.

As LGBT rights anizatns would be at risk of cripplg f, many fear they uld return to practic om the Soviet perd, when homosexualy was crimalized. Commercial LGBT venu would likely be unable to pay the large f mandated unr the law, and activists predicted many gay clubs and bars would shut down — or go pletely unrground an attempt to avoid attentn om the police. While official homophobia has had a long history Put’s Rsia, the current legislative foc on LGBT exprsn appears to be part of a broar crackdown on social mori as the Kreml seeks spegoats for s setbacks the Ukrae war.

‘I’M AAID FOR MY FUTURE’: PROPOSED LAWS THREATEN GAY LIFE RSIA

Image source, RtersThe ntroversial Rsian ban agast promotg so-lled "gay propaganda" looks set to be extend to all move reprents a tougheng of an existg 2013 law, which mak providg rmatn about beg LGBT to children a crimal nvicted face large f for promotg what Rsia lls "non-tradnal sexual relatns" ial approval of the extensn was voted through by the Rsian State Duma unanimoly.

Unr the proposal, rmatn about "non-tradnal liftyl" or "the rejectn of fay valu" would be nsired legally the same as pornography, the promotn of vlence, or stokg racial, ethnic and relig also bans the "propaganda of paedophilia" - which the Rsian ernment often nflat wh beg gay.

Another element of the extensns prohibs rmatn which might "e mors to sire to change their sex", a reference to transgenr enacted, the law would allow any rmatn on the ter discsg LGBT topics to be blocked and films emed to nta posive pictns of beg gay to be banned. Khshte, an MP om Mr Put's Uned Rsia Party, told the Duma that the "special operatn" - what the Rsian ernment sists on llg s war Ukrae - is happeng "not only on the battlefield, but also the mds and souls of people" rhetoric follows that of the Rsian print, who has ma beg anti-gay a rnerstone of his domtic agenda and thorarian speech annexg four Ukraian terrori last month, Mr Put ranted about fai wh a "parent number one and a parent number two" - what has been terpreted as a cricism of same-sex fai. He has portrayed Rsia's war Ukrae as a battle between those who support pro-Wtern gay pri events, and those who reject on this story.