On Sunday, May 17, 2009, in St. Petersburg a successful RainbowFlash was held that was devoted to the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHOT). On this day in 1990 the World Health Organization removed homosexuality from the International Classification of Diseases. The motto of the event was the following: “We do not pretend any more that we do not exist!”

About 250 people in T-shirts with a rainbow flag and IDAHOT pins carried coloured balloons though the streets of our city. Flash-mob participants also handed out flyers saying: “Homosexuality is not a disease! Do you know that May 17 is the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia because:

• on May 17, 1990, the World Health Organization of the UN removed homosexuality from the list of diseases. The new version of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10) was adopted which stated that sexual orientation (heterosexual, bisexual or homosexual) per se would be not considered as a disorder.
• from January 1, 1999, Russian psychiatry also renounced the use of the “homosexuality” diagnosis.

The procession went as an organized group all the way along the Nevsky prospect. The initial plan was to end the event at the Palace Square, but a warning was received that it is there that representatives of the law enforcement agencies were looking forward to meeting us. To avoid additional conversations with them it was decided to move the ending of the flash-mob to the Spit of Vasilievsky Island.

In the very beginning of the event several participants were stopped by the police, but finding no reason for detention they took one balloon and wet away. In an interview to the “Interfax” agency a representative of the Central Internal Affairs Directorate in St. Petersburg and Leningrandskya Oblast reported that no one was detained during this event. “Directorate officers made no detentions as there were no offences registered”, he explained.

We went on the sidewalks following all the rules of the road and not breaking public order. Once we all gathered at the Spit participants took places according to the colors of their balloons forming a six-colour rainbow. At the x-moment 250 coloured balloons were simultaneously let fly into the sky followed by a lasting applause.

Activeness of the LGBT community in St. Petersburg apparently grows. A year ago, when the organization “Coming Out” first appeared, there were 25 participants in the first street event devoted to the Day of Silence. In a year, this number became exactly ten times greater. Currently RainbowFlash is the largest mass event in the history of the Russian LGBT community.

Besides this, it should be noted, that RainbowFlash was carried out in many cities and towns in Russia as well as in other countries.

RainbowFlash in St. Petersburg was organized by the LGBT organization “Coming Out”, the “Russian LGBT Network” and “LesbiPARTYa”.

Text by Vera Polushkina