Due to anti-gay laws, 27 US cities urged to sever 'sister city' ties with Russia
Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Honolulu among cities facing
petition drives 08 August 2013 | By Greg Hernandez As leaders in several
US cities ponder over whether to sever their 'sister city'
relationships with Russia, MoveOn.org petitions have been launched in 27
states to give them a nudge. Russia's hosting the 2014 Olympics has
brought international attention to country's recently-enacted anti-gay
propaganda law and resulted in some calls for an Olympic boycott and
even a boycott of Russian vodka. The law allows police officers to
arrest tourists and foreign nationals they suspect of being homosexual,
lesbian, or 'pro-gay' and detain them for up to 14 days. Severing sister
city ties is meant to send a message that the law in unacceptable.
Among the cities with officials global relationships with Russian cities
is Long Beach, California, which is the official sister city of Sochi
where the 2014 Olympics are to take place. 'The city of Long Beach
should send a clear message that violence against lesbian, gay,
bisexual, and transgender citizens of Sochi, Russia, the rest of Russia,
and international visitors is unacceptable and will not be tolerated,'
states the Long Beach petition launched by Move On member Richard W.
Buksa. There is also a petition for nearby Los Angeles which is the
sister city of St. Petersburg. A proposal to sever that tie has
languished since it was introduced back in February by Bill Rosendahl,
an openly gay member of the City Council whose term ended on 1 July.
Other cities targeted by the petitions include: California's San Jose
and Oakland; Washington's Spokane, Bellingham, and Yakima; New York's
Albany and Binghamton, as well as Honolulu in Hawaii, Reno in Nevada,
and Flagstaff in Arizona, among others. In addition to the anti-gay
laws, the petitions also note 'a rising tide of government-sanctioned
violence and discrimination against LGBT people.
' - See more at: http://www.gaystarnews.com/article/due-anti-gay-laws-27-us-cities-urged-sever-sister-city-ties-
Russia080813#sthash.dSXRC2r9.dpuf
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