Russia’s latest LGTBQ+ law and how it affects gay rights

Russia has a bad reputation when it comes to LGBTQ+ rights.

Russia’s latest LGTBQ+ law and how it affects gay rights
Interior Ministry officers guard the LGBT community rally "VIII St.Petersburg Pride" in St. Petersburg, Russia August 12, 2017. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov

Russia has a bad reputation when it comes to LGBTQ+ rights. In recent years, the government banned some major LGBTQ+ rights groups, like the Sphere Foundation, which informed people about anti-gay purges in Chechnya. Other rights groups are labeled as "foreign agents," which means, according to the Russian government, they receive "foreign funding" and are involved with "political activity." Homosexuality was decriminalized in the country back in 1993, but ILGA-Europe ranks Russia 46th out of 49 European countries for LGBTQ+ inclusion.

On Monday, Russian President Putin signed a law against platforming "LGBT propaganda," banning any public expression of LGBTQ+ identity in art and media. This law includes anything that can be seen as promoting or "praising" homosexuality in public, online, in movies, books or advertising. Breaking the law brings the penalty of a pretty heavy fine. This measure is seen by critics as another way the Russian government is trying to stomp out opposition since the start of the invasion of Ukraine.

Key comments:

"This law is part of an ongoing homophobic government campaign against LGBTQ rights. This is part of a broader attack on anything the government deems 'western and progressive'," said Igor Kochetkov, the head of the Russian LGBT Network, who recently left Russia.

On Monday, Tanya Lokshina, the associate Europe and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said, "The 2013 'gay propaganda' law was an unabashed example of political homophobia, and the new draft legislation amplifies that in broader and harsher ways."

Referring to the war in Ukraine, Alexander Khinshtein, who helped make the bill, said, "The special military operation takes place not only on the battlefield but also in the minds and souls of people."