Thread: Sochi Olympics and the Law against Gays in Russia +

Originally Posted by Throbert McGee

Короче -- the one most important thing I wish that Юрка and Eledhwen and Hanna and others would understand is this: these Russian LGBT people holding the "From Russia with Love" posters are very much ВАШИ.

Они "рекламируют" свою ориентацию, потому что...
...им надоело жить в подполье.

Им надоело жить во тьме, ради чужого суеверного утверждения, что любовь не может быть чистой, истинной, и достойной, если у влюбленных половые органы одного типа.

Им надоело менять местоимения -- "он" за "она" или "она" за "он" -- когда речь идёт о своей "лучшей половиной".

Им надоело смотреть молча, пассивно и бессильно, как других ЛГБТ-людей обижают.

Короче, им всё это надаело, и эти молодцы готовы "играть в мутанты-супергерои" и говорить гомофобным землякам: "Знаете, из-за таких людей, как вы, мы боялись идти в школу..."

Неужели вы думаете, что без американцев, ЛГБТ-россияне никак не могли бы прийти к очевидному выводу, что провести всю жизнь в подполье -- это totally sucks???

Unfortunately, I think that Russia will have to follow its own path with regard to gay rights. I say "unfortunately" because we have already been down this road in America and we have seen what happens when homophobia is condoned and accepted by society. Innocent people have been persecuted, bullied, killed, raped, tortured and so forth. I tried to share the Matthew Shepard story earlier, not because I am trying to spread "propaganda" but because I wish Russians would just look and see what has already happened here, so that they could save themselves the same heartache and suffering.

But I believe that in the end, goodness and love will prevail. I know that Russian mothers love their children as fiercely as American mothers love theirs, so when gay teenagers are bullied and murdered, the mothers of these children will eventually protest for the lives of their babies - just as Matthew Shepard's mom did. She and his father were both mildly homophobic themselves, but their son's horrific death forced them to come to terms with their own prejudices. It was a long and bitter process, which Russia will simply have to experience on its own.

As far as that goes, the fight for gay equality is far from over in America, where gay kids are still bullied to the point where many of them commit suicide because they cannot change what they are, and life simply becomes too painful to go on. I will continue to fight for their right to be who they are without fear of persecution, but we have a long way to go even if we have managed to declare DOMA unconstitutional and allow gay marriage in some states.

Russia's battle will be its own. I only hope that the good people will condemn those who are so hateful that they would propose things like publicly humiliating and whipping people for being gay. I cannot fathom how anyone except the most ignorant of souls could support something as barbaric as that. But then, those who are ignorant are often the last to realize it, and it often takes a deep personal loss before they can finally learn empathy.

Originally Posted by Deborski

Unfortunately, I think that Russia will have to follow its own path with regard to gay rights. I say "unfortunately" because we have already been down this road in America and we have seen what happens when homophobia is condoned and accepted by society.

Well, as I've said, it could be fortunate if Russia follows its own path, because we've ALSO seen in America what happened когда ЛГБТ-Сообщество "выплеснуло и ребёнка вместе с водой".

The "bathwater", in this case, being homophobia, and the "baby" being some elementary sense of self-restraint and sexual boundaries.

For every Matthew Shepherd, there are thousands of young gay men who will be on expensive and toxic anti-viral pills for the rest of their lives because they believed that "it's more loving and intimate and exciting without a condom" -- and they chose to believe this because OTHER GAY MEN told them it was so.

Originally Posted by Throbert McGee

Well, as I've said, it could be fortunate if Russia follows its own path, because we've ALSO seen in America what happened когда ЛГБТ-Сообщество "выплеснуло и ребёнка вместе с водой".

The "bathwater", in this case, being homophobia, and the "baby" being some elementary sense of self-restraint and sexual boundaries.

For every Matthew Shepherd, there are thousands of young gay men who will be on expensive and toxic anti-viral pills for the rest of their lives because they believed that "it's more loving and intimate and exciting without a condom" -- and they chose to believe this because OTHER GAY MEN told them it was so.

If Russia can figure it out with less suffering, and get it better than we did, then I hope they succeed. I would be the last person to claim that America has done everything right.