Blog Post from YFG Dublin Regional Organiser Dale McDermott
Progress. This is something I decided Russia had achieved since the fall of Communism. A modern day democracy with free market idealisms bringing a nation from the depths of far left lunacy, to a place where its citizens are free and free to make their own success in life. Progress.
But something has gone terribly wrong. Progress is being replaced with punishment and that punishment is being directed solely at a certain section of its society, the LGBT community. Russia has embarked on a modern style Schutzstaffel clampdown on their lives, who they are and what they are. It is now illegal to speak about what is a reality, people are gay and this is just a fact.
Russian President Vladimir Putin claims that he wants to protect society and its future by restricting as much information as possible about what he would assert as a western phenomenon.
We must be totally clear and unequivocal about what is happening here – history is repeating itself and I profoundly worry that we are about to enter a full cycle. British media icon Stephen Fry drew a parallel between the atrocities and marginalisation that was carried out to the Jewish community in Germany under the Third Reich to what is being introduced by the political powers in Moscow.
Mr. Fry is completely correct in his comparisons. What is happening in Russia is the persecution of a part of her society. It is a persecution that is dangerous, that poses a real threat to minorities of all creeds across Russia and begs us, in a setting that respects rights, to stand up.
Russia holds the honour of hosting the 2014 Winter Olympics next year. History is indeed about the complete a full cycle if they are allowed to host one of the greatest international events. Under the thin veneer of progress that Russia will want to show off to the world, an intolerant society exists and this very society that President Putin is pushing, cannot be hidden.
We cannot pretend that this is not happening. While Olympic athletes were collecting their well-deserved gold, silver and bronze medals in the 1936 German Olympics, Jewish citizens across all of Germany were crying out for help, but to no avail. Our Russian LGBT friends will be doing just that.
British Prime Minister David Cameron believes that a boycott is not the way to challenge the problems Russia has but I could not disagree more. By boycotting the games in 2014, we can send a clear and strong message saying what you are doing is wrong and we will not tolerate it or support it.
The persecution of its people has become a reality. Russia has made many leaps of faith in the past and turned around what was once a depressing, degenerate, economic failure to a state pushing policies of reform and regeneration.
A sad reality has however returned to the motherland – all citizens are free in Russia, but some are freer than others.
