American_Jihad
Flaming Libs/Koranimals
I wonder, what do they think...
Russia's Crackdown On 'Gay Propaganda' And Popular Illiberalism
Mark Adomanis
6/29/13
Over at The Nation, Alec Luhn recently wrote a quite good summary of the recently-passed ban on gay propaganda and the generally perilous state of gay rights in Russia. I encourage everyone to read the full article, particularly because it does an excellent job of showing that Russian gay rights activists are themselves deeply conflicted and divided about what to do next. Some, particularly those that get the most attention in the West, want to focus on holding large public demonstrations of gay pride. Others think that Russian gays should adopt a more cautious stance that is based on coming out to family and close friends and then gradually broadening out from there.*
The point is that Russias gays are not united in lockstep behind a particular issue, strategy, or goal, but are people with all of the messiness, bickering, and spontaneity that that entails. That might sound rather obvious or banal, but in discussions about the ban on gay propaganda there is an unfortunate tendency to lump Russias gays together into some homogeneous and undifferentiated mass.
But what really struck me about Luhns article, what really got me thinking, was the widespread popularity of anti-gay sentiment. The Duma bill banning gay propaganda passed unanimously. Not a single member of the official opposition felt comfortable voting against it. Obviously the opposition doesnt doesnt control the Duma, United Russia does, but the Communists, the LDPR, and other groups have no problem voting against various sorts of economic and fiscal policies. Yes the Duma is hardly a paragon of democratic accountability, but unanimous bills are still quite rare and it seems worth noting how quickly its deputies fell in line behind the legislation.
...
Russia's Crackdown On 'Gay Propaganda' And Popular Illiberalism - Forbes
Russia's Crackdown On 'Gay Propaganda' And Popular Illiberalism
Mark Adomanis
6/29/13
Over at The Nation, Alec Luhn recently wrote a quite good summary of the recently-passed ban on gay propaganda and the generally perilous state of gay rights in Russia. I encourage everyone to read the full article, particularly because it does an excellent job of showing that Russian gay rights activists are themselves deeply conflicted and divided about what to do next. Some, particularly those that get the most attention in the West, want to focus on holding large public demonstrations of gay pride. Others think that Russian gays should adopt a more cautious stance that is based on coming out to family and close friends and then gradually broadening out from there.*
The point is that Russias gays are not united in lockstep behind a particular issue, strategy, or goal, but are people with all of the messiness, bickering, and spontaneity that that entails. That might sound rather obvious or banal, but in discussions about the ban on gay propaganda there is an unfortunate tendency to lump Russias gays together into some homogeneous and undifferentiated mass.
But what really struck me about Luhns article, what really got me thinking, was the widespread popularity of anti-gay sentiment. The Duma bill banning gay propaganda passed unanimously. Not a single member of the official opposition felt comfortable voting against it. Obviously the opposition doesnt doesnt control the Duma, United Russia does, but the Communists, the LDPR, and other groups have no problem voting against various sorts of economic and fiscal policies. Yes the Duma is hardly a paragon of democratic accountability, but unanimous bills are still quite rare and it seems worth noting how quickly its deputies fell in line behind the legislation.
...
Russia's Crackdown On 'Gay Propaganda' And Popular Illiberalism - Forbes