Crossposted from https://lemmy.world/post/23801022
Russia fined at least seven people for “looking too gay” after a police raid on a nightclub in Tula in February which videos show was carried out by men in military-style uniforms and helmets.
It comes as the Kremlin ramps up a push to promote “traditional values” that has included tightening anti-LGBT legislation and banning “propaganda promoting a child-free lifestyle”.
One man had “crosses of black tape glued to his nipples” and a “women’s style corset” on his “naked” body.
Another had “pink socks … an unbuttoned kimono over his shoulders, his hair dyed bright orange, and red tattoos on his face”.
“Although a man, he was wearing a short top covering his chest, black leather shorts above the knee, on which there were several chain-shaped ornaments, and fishnet tights,” read another description.
“The appearance of the detainees is inconsistent with the image of a man of traditional sexual orientation,” judges were reported to have said.
Russian Man Arrested for Organizing LGBTQ+ Tours Dies in Police Custody
A Russian man arrested […] for organizing LGBTQ+ travel tours has died in pre-trial detention, rights groups and Russian state media reported Sunday.
Andrei Kotov, the director of the travel agency Men Travel, was charged last month with taking part and organizing “extremist” activities.
The OVD-Info rights group cited Kotov’s lawyer as saying investigators told her that he committed suicide early Sunday. […] OVD-Info said that the 40-year-old Kotov reported being beaten during his arrest last month. Last month, state media published a video of him being questioned on the floor by law enforcement authorities.
