Gay Men In Chechnya

Russian federation has struggled with human rights, it works tirelessly to give all humans equal opportunities. The constitution of Russian federation and the federal

This paper addresses human rights abuses against members of the LGBT community in Russia. The LGBT community has been a marginalized group of society in Russia in many ways throughout history, however the legislation that was recently passed in Russia goes a step further to strip these individuals of their human rights and dignity. The legislation is inconsistent with several human rights provisions in international treaties that have been ratified by Russia: International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR); International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ICESCR); Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW); Convention Against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment (CAT); and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC); European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR); and the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT). There are also several articles in Russia’s own constitution which are incompatible with current human rights abuses against the LGBT community, as well as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), and the Yogyakarta Principles.

From Western audiences, Chechnya—whether as an autonomous oblast, a sovereign state, or a war zone—has never received much consideration. Just one of dozens of ethnic groups within Russia who have declared since the end of the Soviet Union their right to self-rule and self-determination, the Chechens’ struggle for independence was drowned out in the cacophony of calls for independence during the 1990s. However, in a world so greatly affected by the events of September 11, 2001 and given the role of Chechen separatist groups in bombings of Russian apartment buildings in 1999 (which killed more than 300) and the hostage-taking of a Russian theater in 2002 (which resulted in the deaths of 130 Russians and 30 rebels), the rhetoric of

The Holocaust is a tragedy that plagues the memory of the entire world; one’s race, sexuality, disability, or, most often, religion, could be a death sentence in Nazi Germany, and every year the world gathers to promise that such a genocide will never happen again. But despite this promise, events mirroring the Holocaust are starting to occur. Reports have been published claiming that in Chechnya--a republic within Russia-- 3 gay Russian men have been killed, and at least 100 more have been detained.1 Some European countries are accepting refugees from Chechnya, and the United States State Department released a statement hoping for the end to this situation. However, the continued existence of this problem means those efforts have not been enough.2, 3 As a major world power and the “Leader of the Free World,” the United States must do more to help gay individuals in Chechnya and end this persecution before it spirals into genocide. The situation in Chechnya is already eerily similar to the events leading up to and occurring during the Holocaust, and the United States must speak up against the persecution of gay men in Chechnya so that history does not repeat itself.

Humiliated, beaten, and neglected; an entire group of people are constantly under abuse. They must hide from their own government in fear of death. The citizens expose their neighbors in order to create a more perfect country. No documentation exists that outlaws the violence towards these people. Their leaders do not want to recognize that they have any existence. All of this is happening while surrounding countries sit idle and wait for a resolution to happen. When hearing this description, many people think of the Holocaustic horrors during World War Two. This type of violence and cruelty surely could not happen in our world today without headlining the news everywhere. Could it? Today, thousands of homosexuals are under attack throughout the country of Russia. We are witnessing an attempt to kill off an entire society of humans. Are we going to sit back and allow this genocide to occur? As a progressive nation, we must try to end this tyranny through creating an opposition to the Russian government’s policies and through strengthening the equality in our own government.

Human rights abuses in Chechnya. In 2005, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that

When we consider the Russia Olympic Committee (or the Russia society) and the reasoning behind why this activity is occurring, we note a number of what Matza and Sykes call “Techniques of neutralization”. These techniques look at how people “neutralize” the conventional values through “techniques” such as the denial of responsibility and appeal to higher loyalties (Ferrell et al. 2008). The Russian Olympic Committee continues to state that they are not responsible for the possible threat of terrorist’s attacks; they also continue to blame “open” athletes as being part of the problem. Russia’s anti-gay law outlaws gay propaganda around children. President Putin states in a The Atlantic article that the athletes would stay safe if they stayed away from the children. Here we are able to see appeal to higher loyalties from them stating that it is not their fault if something happens, its someone else’s (or the states) fault.

However, this process can difficult for someone who is homosexual, many minority cultures frown upon being gay or lesbian, it is hard enough for homosexuals to be accepted amongst their family, because once they “come out,” they are exposed to a new set or norms and life-style, which goes against the traditional way of living and beliefs. In this article the authors explain the bicultural process for those who are homosexuals, explaining that a homosexual must first find a way to be accepted amongst their minority culture, and then expose themselves to the majority culture through socialization. However, when socializing with the mainstream culture as a gay or lesbian, many times that leads to further issues in areas such as marriage, family, parenting, education, and religion. Not only is a challenge for them to be accepted in these areas by society, but there are actual laws and legislations that exclude them from these

Besides facing discrimination and a variety of challenges in several aspects of life, the LGBT community is still subject of tremendous inequalities in many countries around the world. One of these countries is the Russian Federation, which legally prohibits and penalizes “propaganda” of homosexuality. In other words, public and explicit display of affection among same-sex couples is illegal, and consequently, people liberally demonstrating their homosexuality may experience severe consequences that range from an expensive fine to spending the night in jail. In addition, foreigners such as immigrants, tourists or international students, are subject to deportation from Russian domains.

Homophobia is transporting Russia back in time to the late 1800s and early 1900s—the epoch of the racial issues in America. With several gay rights being legalized, it seemed that Russia had begun to accept the LGBT community into their society. But the violent and repressive actions towards gay people and their supporters have proved that Russia is not becoming any more tolerant of gays. It is unsure if Russians even view gays as humans. The present status of the Russian homophobia problem is starting to spiral out of control. Given Russia’s oscillating history with the LGBT community, it’s nearly impossible to predict whether or not Russia will accept or kill the gay people. Based on the current situation, it seems like the former will

How have the perceptions of homosexuals’ rights evolved in Russia from the 1930s to the 1990s?

The LGBT community in Israel has a rich but shaky history, mostly because of the prevalence of ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities (who do not approve of non-heterosexuality) in the country. The conflict between the LGBT community and the ultra-Orthodox (otherwise known as Haredim) community have risen to the point of violence. One such violent incident took place during this summer, when a Haredi man went to a Gay Pride Parade in Jerusalem and stabbed six people. He had previously stabbed people at a Pride Parade, and at the time of the stabbing, had been out of prison for just three weeks. Furthermore, many of the government’s statements to the press were twofold: first, they condemmed the perpetrator for committing a hate crime, and second,

LGBT people living or visiting Russia face homophobia on a daily basis. There are many hate crimes against LGBT people. In 2013, 25 hate crimes were reported against LGBT people and two murders were reported (“Make Olympics In Russia The Gayest Ever.”CNN Wire 2 Aug. 2013. Opposing Viewpoints in Context). These hate crimes are directly targeted at people who are LGBT and show the danger and homophobia these people have to face. This shows that Russian homosexuals cannot feel safe in their own country, and that there are many people who feel so strongly against

LGBT is a very common discussing chapter now-a-days. The number of LGBT people is increasing day by day but the social perspective is still the same to them. People still used to criticize them and think them low. Many people have not changed their social view towards the LGBT people and these reasons has made this topic most important.

The ongoing civil war between the semi-autonomous republic of Chechnya and Russia has dramatically caught the attention of the world – a world that perceives the conflict primarily through the distorted lens of Russian propaganda, and the contradicting images of Chechen suffering on the independent media. If the West seems impartial or even indifferent to the Chechen conflict, it is because there is little understanding of this people, of their struggle, or of the vast complexities of the greater North Caucasian region in which the Chechens are a part. This lack of understanding extends to the hazy Western perception of the role of Islam in Chechen society. The broad generalizations that have been made by those