fbpx

Blog

The Only Openly Gay Family in Russia Flee for Children’s Safety – by Lynda Laushway

August 14, 2013

Author Masha Gessen is leaving her home in Russia and moving to the United States with her partner and three children.  Gessen is the courageous author of the book entitled The Man Without a Face: The Unlikely Rise of Vladimir Putin and has been the only openly gay family in Russia.  The recent Russian crackdown on the LGBT community and rumours of taking children away from homosexual families have led to this decision.  Up until a year ago, the outspoken Gessen had vowed to remain In Russia and was quoted as saying, “This is my home, Putin can leave. I’m staying.”  Now Gessen has decided that Russia has become a place without hope.  “I can do the work in Russia, and I would do the work in Russia, but I have three kids and it’s one thing to bring up your kids in a place that’s risky and difficult; I think in many ways it’s enriching them, and I’m glad my kids have that experience. It’s another thing to bring up your kids in a place that’s hopeless. Now that I’ve lost hope, I need to take them out.”

Author Masha Gessen
Author Masha Gessen

The Russia of today is extremely homophobic.  In addition to facing widespread animosity and frequent violence, gay Russians now fear that they will be stripped of their voice and public face.  The new federal law against “propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations,” was approved unanimously except for one abstention in June. It is another manifestation of a long-standing culture of homophobia that is fueled by the state-controlled media.

Under the new law, it is punishable by fine to speak openly about gays and lesbians among young people, which effectively outlaws gay-pride marches, speeches and the like.  Amid demonstrations to protest the controversial law, Moscow police came down hard on gay-rights activists who demonstrated in front of their parliament.

For long-time author, gay rights proponent, and openly Lesbian mother, Masha Gellen- Russia has now become a place without hope for social justice.

Gay rights activists under arrest in Russia
Gay rights activists under arrest in Moscow
Best Books to Read for International Women’s Day

Best Books to Read for International Women’s Day

Leading up to International Women’s Day, we asked Sophia vom Bauer Jackson, service manager at the Salt Spring Island Public Library, to make a list of contemporary female-focused books. This is her Top 5 (fiction and non-fiction) plus some extra recommendations (all...

Healthy Risk Taking is about Growing and Developing

Healthy Risk Taking is about Growing and Developing

Teenagers crave and seek risks. It helps them to develop and grow. We often think of risk-taking as dangerous, but risk-taking is not always negative. Healthy risk-taking – like hiking up a mountain, riding a unicycle, or performing on stage – helps kids build...

Social-Emotional Learning during the Holidays

Social-Emotional Learning during the Holidays

School is almost out, and students will have a well-deserved break from class. However, learning doesn’t have to stop completely as soon as school is out for the year. The holidays are the perfect time to practice kindness and generosity. We've curated five tips to...

Never too Young to Remember December 6

Never too Young to Remember December 6

On December 6th, 1989, the day that fourteen young women at l’École Polytechnique in Montreal were killed by a gunman as a deliberate act of violence against women, Quinn Mulherin (21, she/they*) wasn’t born yet. She learned about the tragedy years later when she...

The Past and the Future of the Core (Inn)

The Past and the Future of the Core (Inn)

Salt Spring Island does not have a lot of facilities to accommodate young people, but we do have The Core (Inn) on McPhilipps Avenue. It is a safe place where island youth can come together to hang out, play music and games, and where snacks and healthy food are...

Book about stereotypes helps kids combat bias

Book about stereotypes helps kids combat bias

Identifying and questioning stereotypes, bias, and prejudice has been part of our educational programs since we started to develop our social-emotional learning framework for kids and youth twenty-five years ago. It turns out that stereotypes start to take form in our...

Name(Required)
Email(Required)
Please let us know what's on your mind. Have a question for us? Ask away.
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.