Russia’s Straight Alliance for LGBT Equality Holds Protests In St. Petersburg – Video
by Will Kohler
Russia’s Straight Alliance for LGBT Equality
held a series of brave protests in solidarity with other groups around
the world this past week against Russia’s extreme discrimination
against its LGBT citizens The Straight Alliance for LGBT Equality participated in the #Russia4Love - Day of Action despite being stalked and filmed by police, and harassed by anti-gay Russian extremist.
We,
Russian LGBT people and their allies, would like to thank all the
people around the world who support us and express their concern about
the events in our country in hope of making a difference and pulling
Russia out of a tightening medieval darkness,’ the organizers said in an
official statement.
About
30 Straight Alliance for LGBT Equality members gathered near the city’s
statue of Peter the Great in St. Petersburg but soon attracted a police
attention who refused to let protesters take photographs of themselves
with their signs so the activists moved to St Isaac’s Square. Police
filmed the whole action and demanded the IDs of those involved.
In
another part of the city Daniel Grachev, picketed at the Olympic clock
in the Little Stables and was attacked by Russian nationalists who
approached him and shoved a cake in his face and said "Welcome to the Soviet Union. Welcome to Russia".
Grachev
was wearing a T-shirt with a pink triangle, which served as a pretext
for an attack, as well as a poster, on which was written " The Nuremberg
Trials, and not the Olympics. "
"I
wanted to convey the idea that Russia is going to fascism, and it is
not a place for the Olympic Games and the space for the Nuremberg
trials," - he said.
The
two men who attacked Daniel were arrested but while at the police
station the St. Petersberg police also checked into Grachev
extremism. "I was amused by it." said Daniel. "If I am am arrested for
calling Russia a facist state then Russia proves that it is indeed a
fascist state, "- he concluded. (Loosely translated from Russian text)
Video of Daniel's attack can be seen below:
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