Russia Planning Stronger Anti-Gay Laws

Russia seems to be gearing up to add more to its anti-LGBTQ laws fall. Currently, they have a law known as the “gay propaganda” law, and it makes it illegal to talk about being LGBTQ near or with children due to the belief that this will cause the child to become LGBTQ.

That ridiculous notion will be amplified by the newest addendum. If passed, the law would criminalize the discussion of being LGBTQ to all ages. More specifically, the law will criminalize the discussion or “promotion” of non-heterosexual relationships, or what the law itself calls “non-traditional family values.” This implicates all media containing the LGBTQ community and any discussion thereof as “propaganda” in favor of the LGBTQ community.

Amongst this addendum to the law, many news outlets and The Russian Book Union, a group of publishers, have expressed concern about the censorship and banning of books that either go against this law and contain important cultural relevance to Russia. According to Alexander Khinstein, the chair of Duma, Russia’s lower parliament, he does not consider classic literature to be what he describes as “propaganda.”

Russia is not new to censorship or propagandized media. Currently, during the war on Ukraine, there are penalties outside of the law for even calling the war what it is. In schools, children are taught about Russia’s victories and not their involvement in war crimes, such as the Soviet Union’s involvement in World War II.

Besides being incredibly anti-LGBTQ, the idea that discussing being LGBTQ or having positive representation in the media makes children become LGBTQ is ridiculous. There is no behavioral evidence to back up that ideology at all. Discussing the LGBTQ community with children simply introduces them to a healthier worldview in which they can freely express themselves without the confines of gender roles or norms.