Chronicle of pressure on LGBTQ people: Human rights news, court updates & analysis | 62 related articles

27.02.2025

11:37

Sergey Sosov, who was convicted in the case involving a collage with Hitler, has been fined two thousand roubles (approximately US$22) for displaying LGBTQ symbols. This was reported by the law enforcement-linked Telegram channel “Tula. EkstremiZm”; the case details can be found on the court’s website.

Sosov was found guilty under the article on the display of prohibited symbols (Part 1 of Article 20.3 of the Administrative Offences Code). The case was heard by the Plavsky Interdistrict Court in Tula region, south of Moscow, on 20 December.

The reason for the fine was certain images posted on VKontakte.

In December 2023, Sosov was sentenced to three years of compulsory labour, having been found guilty of insulting the memory of the defenders of the Fatherland online. Then, in December 2024, the man was detained for evading his punishment in the form of compulsory labour, as he had failed to arrive at the correctional centre. According to the “Tula. EkstremiZm” publication, after this, the remainder of Sergey Sosov’s sentence was converted to imprisonment. He is now being held in Penal Colony No. 5 in Tula region.

17.02.2025

20:58

The Tagansky District Court in Moscow has fined the online writers’ platform Wattpad 3.5 million roubles (approximately US$39,000) for failing to remove prohibited information (Part 2, Article 13.41 of the Code of Administrative Offences). This was reported by the press service of Moscow courts and noted by Mediazona.

The protocol was prompted by the publication of “works about same-sex sexual relationships,” according to a report from the outlet ‘Govorit i Pokazyvaet Moskva’ (Moscow Speaks and Shows).

Representatives of Wattpad accepted responsibility. They added that service moderators remove content “prohibited by Russian law,” but cannot always do so promptly because “the platform operates globally and has more than 90 million users.”

Wattpad is an online service where anyone can publish their book.

13:51

Krasnodar Krai

In a nightclub in Krasnodar, a major city in southern Russia, a raid was carried out on the night of 15 February. Law enforcement officers detained two women. This was reported by the regional police press office.

At the time of the raid, there were around 200 people in the venue.

According to the police press office, the two detainees are “supporters of an organisation banned and declared extremist on the territory of the Russian Federation”—most likely referring to the LGBTQ community.

Protocols were drawn up against the women under the article on “LGBTQ propaganda” (Part 1, Article 6.21 of the Code of Administrative Offences). Law enforcement officers also issued warnings to twelve other clubgoers about the inadmissibility of breaking the law.

09.02.2025

14:30

Vladimir Oblast

In Vladimir, a city to the east of Moscow, a cashier was fired from Pyaterochka supermarket after a customer filmed and insulted them over their makeup, reported local pro-government journalist Aleksandr Stepanov on his Telegram channel.

“One of these so-called defenders of traditional values must be feeling a lot better: that cashier was fired from Pyaterochka. Whatever the case, I don’t consider mocking a person to be a traditional value—though apparently, some people do,” he wrote.

The Vladimir-based outlet Dovod reports that this information was confirmed by a source in the local branch of the Interior Ministry. The outlet describes the cashier as a transgender woman, but there has been no definite information about this person’s gender identity.

Recently, a video was circulating on social media, filmed by a customer who insulted the cashier for wearing makeup. The customer used several homophobic slurs.

“Guys are dying for faggots like you, is that it, you jerk, fuck? Why are you wearing makeup, why the hell are you doing your eyebrows? You should be a man too,” the customer said to the Pyaterochka staff member. He also expressed outrage: “Why the hell do they hire faggots?”

After this, “Veterans of Russia” demanded an explanation from the X5 Group, which operates the Pyaterochka supermarket chain. They also filed complaints with the Prosecutor General’s Office and the Investigative Committee, requesting an investigation “to check for possible breaches of the law related to LGBT propaganda.”

21.01.2025

21:40

Temporarily occupied Autonomous Republic of Crimea

A 30-year-old Crimean, Asan O., has been fined 100,000 rubles (approximately US$1,100) under the article on “LGBT propaganda” (part 3, article 6.21 of the Russian Code of Administrative Offences). The information was discovered by Verstka.

The reason was a video posted on Odnoklassniki showing several people holding a rainbow flag and a photo of Vladimir Putin with makeup. The video was captioned: “There are GAYS working in Putin’s administration.”

At the court hearing, the man explained that he had not uploaded the video to his own page, but had simply given a “like” to a post published by an acquaintance. After that, the post appeared on the Crimean’s profile. Verstka notes that this is indeed how the “like” system on Odnoklassniki works.

09:43

Moscow

The Dorogomilovsky Court in Moscow has issued Lev Mironov a fine for kissing a statue of Metro builders at Elektrozavodskaya station “in front of underage friends.” Activatica drew attention to the case.

The young man was found guilty under the article on “LGBT propaganda” (Part 2, Article 6.21 of the Code of Administrative Offences). The amount of the fine is not specified, but the court decision states that “non-traditional” in this case consists of two elements: “not directed at a person; directed at a depiction of someone of the same gender.”

The video—where teenagers attack a Yandex courier, seize his box of food, run out onto the road and kiss the monument—originally appeared on the “Pravye Highlights” Telegram channel.

16.01.2025

14:42

Novgorod Oblast

Oleg Markin, a resident of Novgorod region, was fined 1,500 roubles (approximately US$16) on 26 December for posting on VKontakte “a graphic image of a mythical creature with wings at a sewing machine, sewing a six-coloured flag, and a mythical creature standing by a waterfall with a six-coloured rainbow.” Markin was found guilty of displaying prohibited symbols (Article 20.3, part 1 of the Russian Code of Administrative Offences). The SOVA Centre has highlighted the ruling of the Novgorod District Court.

13.01.2025

15:35

Saint Petersburg

In St Petersburg, the Otto Dix concert scheduled for 26 January has been cancelled. The group’s announcement has been highlighted by “Bumaga.”

A representative for Otto Dix noted that the concert was cancelled “for reasons beyond the control of the group and organisers.”

As “Bumaga” points out, shortly before this announcement appeared, the pro-government Telegram channel “Russian Community of St Petersburg” published a call for people to contact the Investigative Committee and prosecutor’s office demanding an inspection of the band.

In December, activists from the “Russian Community” came to the Pravda club in Moscow and demanded the Otto Dix concert be cancelled to “stop Satanism and LGBT propaganda.” At the time, a club representative refused to call off the event. “Challenge accepted. Satanism will not prevail,” the “Russian Community” responded. The same day, Otto Dix cancelled the concert planned for 22 December.

In October, riot police disrupted the group’s concerts in Yaroslavl and Nizhny Novgorod—major cities in central Russia. On 15 December, an Otto Dix concert in St Petersburg was cancelled just a few hours before it was due to begin due to provocations from the “Russian Community.”

11.01.2025

10:43

Moscow

A protocol was drawn up against the TV Centre channel for “demonstrating LGBT relationships” to minors without an “18+” age restriction (part 2 of article 6.21.2 of the Administrative Offences Code). This was reported by the outlet Mediazona.

The administrative case has been submitted to the Tagansky District Court in Moscow. It is not yet known which film or TV series triggered the protocol against the channel.

In June last year, the general director of the NTS TV channel was fined 100,000 rubles (approximately US$1,100) over a video by Svetlana Loboda. They were found guilty under the same article, as the music video titled Indie Rock (Vogue) was shown on air with a “16+” age rating.

09.01.2025

10:46

Republic of Sakha (Yakutia)

On 3 January, the Yakutsk City Court fined Number One club-restaurant’s owner, the company LLC “Jinlun,” 250,000 roubles (approximately US$2,800), finding it guilty under the article on organising a mass gathering of people in a public place that resulted in a breach of public order (Part 1, Article 20.2.2 of the Code of Administrative Offences). The press service of the region’s courts reported this.

The owners of the club were charged over a show during which, according to the court, “people were present in a state of undress that demeaned human dignity” and there was “promotion of non-traditional sexual relations.”

On the afternoon of 2 January, in Number One, law enforcement arrived and detained bartenders, waiters and the executive director; there were no performers in the club-restaurant at the time. Earlier, the Yakutsk administrative commission’s Telegram channel reported that since 26 December shows had been held featuring “transgender women from Thailand and men of non-traditional sexual orientation.” Yakutsk is the capital city of the Sakha Republic in northeast Russia.

The head of the administrative commission, Felix Antonov, took part in the raid on the club. “In the videos circulated on social media, it is clear that they are transvestites. They were dancing with each other, promoting non-traditional values,” the official stated.

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Chronicle of pressure on LGBTQ people