36 Photos From Russia That Everyone Needs To See
It's a scary place for LGBT people in Russia right now.
1. St. Petersburg Gay Pride, 2013:
2.
3. What began as a peaceful march...
4. ...ended up turning incredibly violent as anti-gay protesters overtook the rally.
5. A gay rights supporter is beaten to the ground.
6. Smoke bombs are set off.
7. Chaos ensues.
8. A woman runs from the crowd.
9. Two men flee...
10. ...but are eventually detained.
11. In the end, police officers detained several of the gay activists.
12. The 2012 parade ended the same way.
13. That event was also overrun by anti-gay protesters.
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15. Moscow, May 2013:
16. An unauthorized protest turns violent.
17. Gay activists end up being detained.
18. The 2012 Moscow gay pride was filled with more of the same...
19. ...more detained gay rights activists.
20. June 2013: Gay rights activists hold a kiss-in in Moscow.
21. The activists were protesting a new "gay propaganda" law. The law would introduce steep fines and jail terms for people who promote homosexual "propaganda" to minors.
22. That event also ended violently.
23. Russian police detained more than 20 gay rights activists...
24. ...as gay rights activists were pelted with rotten eggs.
25.
26. The same thing happened at a "kissing protest" in January.
27. That event also turned bloody.
28. More violence.
29. An Orthodox activist pulls a gay rights campaigner's hair.
30. Unknown assailants attack a gay rights activist.
31. Meanwhile, Russian lawmakers passed a bill barring same-sex foreign couples from adopting Russian children.
32. The anti-gay propaganda bill became a law.
33. And just this past week, four Dutch citizens were tried in Moscow for a “gay propaganda” crime.
34. Still, activists keep on fighting.
35. This one says, "Homophobia kills!"
36. And this one says, "Love is stronger than hate."
Russia is hosting the 2014 Olympic games in Sochi. What does this mean for gay athletes and spectators? Is the US Olympic Committee okay with this?
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this post misidentified a straight ally as an anti-gay protester. Those photos have been replaced. (7/23/13)