7/10/12

Profiles in courage: 8 Russian gay activists arrested last weekend in St. Petersburg



I wish I had the physical courage of these Russian LGBT activists to withstand this level of harassement and manhandling by the police in St. Petersburg, Russia. Yury Gavrikov, a scientist, was leading the protest (follow him on twitter at @gayury).

The SF Chronicle discusses the reasons for their arrest:

Although homosexuality was decriminalized after the fall of the Soviet Union, disdain for gays remains strong in Russia. Some rally attempts provoke violence by opponents. 
St. Petersburg passed a law in February calling for fines of up to 500,000 rubles ($15,000) for spreading "homosexual propaganda.

Full article here.http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/8-gay-activists-arrested-in-St-Petersburg-3690306.php

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