Gay Rights Groups Reach Out

With 66 days to go until the 2014 Winter Olympics, gay rights groups such as Athlete Ally, All Out, and Queer Nation are reaching out to the Russian LGBT community through protests and merchandise.

Principle 6 Clothing Line

Athlete Ally and All Out are teaming up with American Apparel to promote a new clothing line for Sochi athletes.

The Principle 6 clothing line will feature logos referring to the Olympic Charter, which bans all forms of discrimination in its sixth principle.

Speedskater Blake Skjellerup and renowned diver Greg Louganis are among more than 30 Olympic athletes already in talks with Athlete Ally about sporting Principle 6 gear at the Sochi Games.

Brian Healey, program coordinator for Athlete Ally, told Around the Rings in a statement that the campaign will offer athletes and fans a way to speak out against discrimination "without violating Russia’s anti-gay laws or violating the Olympic ban on political speech."

Healey told ATR it is hard to determine exactly how the Principle 6 clothing line will be received by the IOC. He added, "Hopefully this will influence the decision making process when it comes to selecting host nations for the Games in the future."

Ultimately, Healey said Athlete Ally hopes this campaign will focus international attention on Russia’s "horrendously bigoted laws."

Healey added that the collaborative Principle 6 campaign is working to "bring lasting change to the nation so that the Russian LGBTQ community is no longer forced to live in fear and oppression."

Protest at Barnard College in New York

On Monday night, openly gay figure skater and NBC Olympic commentator Johnny Weir spoke at Barnard College in New York. Members of Queer Nation staged a protest during the event to encourage NBC to "tell the truth about the dire circumstances of LGBT Russians."

Queer Nation member Duncan Osborne said in statement, "NBC has embarked on a disinformation campaign to minimize the plight of LGBT Russians in order to justify its involvement in the Games."

Protesters called out Weir and openly gay MSNBC anchor Thomas Roberts, who have both made "public comments that suggest Russia’s anti-gay laws are not harming LGBT Russians." Osborne said this is not the case, and that Russia’s legislation has led to "de facto state-sanctioned beatings, torture, rape, and murder of Russian lesbians and gay men."

Since Russia enacted its gay propaganda ban, many athletes and celebrities have voiced support for the country’s LGBT community. Weir has said "the Olympics are not the place to make a political statement." During his speech on Monday, Weir dismissed Queer Nation protesters: "They say all these stupid things...I never supported the [Russian] government. I supported the people."

Written byNicole Bennett

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