Russian police raid clubs in crackdown on LGBTQ+ ‘propaganda,’ make arrests

Author: Trudy Ring

About a dozen patrons of Moscow nightclubs were arrested last weekend during raids by police looking to stamp out LGBTQ+ “propaganda” in Russia.

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They were convicted of “petty hooliganism,” NBC News reports, citing Russian media and court documents.

Police raided three clubs, Arma, Inferno, and Mono, late Saturday and early Sunday. “Videos and images of the raids shared on social media over the weekend showed stunned clubgoers lying on dance floors with their hands above their heads as police officers sifted through the crowds and shouted orders,” according to NBC.

“These citizens committed an administrative offense, which was expressed in obvious disrespect for society, accompanied by obscene language in a public place,” Moscow court officials said in a written statement quoted by the network. It’s not clear what penalty they face, although violation of Russia’s law against LGBTQ+ “propaganda” comes with a fine of up to 400,000 rubles ($6,500).

Those arrested included the director of Men Travel, a travel agency serving LGBTQ+ customers, notes The Moscow Times,an independent (not state-run) publication. He was arrested on suspicion of “preparing a trip for supporters of non-traditional sexual values to go to Egypt for the New Year holidays,” says a statement from Russia’s state-run Tass news agency.

The Times reports a raid on a fourth nightclub, Inferno Night, which Russia’s Interior Ministry said was “propagandizing the ideology of the banned LGBT movement.”

In 2013, Russia banned LGBTQ+ “propaganda,” that is, any positive mention of LGBTQ+ people or topics, in venues accessible to minors. In 2022, the nation extended the ban to apply to adults as well. And a year ago, the Russian Supreme Court granted a request from the country’s Ministry of Justice to label the “international LGBT social movement” as “extremist” and outlaw any movement activities.

There were raids on LGBTQ+ bars around Russia shortly after the Supreme Court ruling, and they have continued over the past year. The Russian government has ramped up anti-LGBTQ+ activity since the country’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, claiming Russia is making war on Western values.

President Vladimir Putin signed two more anti-LGBTQ+ bills into law last month. One bans the adoption of Russian children by foreign nationals from countries that recognize a person’s right to gender-affirming care. The other bans what it terms “childfree propaganda” that promotes nontraditional families as a positive environment for children.

Original Article on The Advocate
Author: Trudy Ring