Coming Out

2009. Summary of LGBT-activists work in St. Petersburg.

In 2009 St. Petersburg saw a record number of different events and actions aimed at fighting homophobia and discrimination of LGBT community - lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders.

It is step by step that a human being becomes aware of his or her difference from the others. At first he or she is afraid of being different, but then becomes proud of it. These are the traits of a normal person. The world is moved by phobias towards any demonstration of differences, and step by step the human being does one thing only: he or she destroys phobias. And the more fears of the different a person vanquished, the more of the inexplicable he or she accepted in his or her life, the more civilized this person is.

On September 26th a seminar for journalists took place.
«Media coverage of the issues concerning adoption».

The seminar has been organized by the Institute of Regional Press with the support of Ministers’ Council of Northern Countries. It took place in Pushkin.

One and a half of an hour from two days has been given to the matter of the adoption by same gender families.
There were representatives (editors, editors in chief, correspondents) of many regional media.

Internal homophobia is the sense of shame and fear, caused by one’s own homosexuality.

I’m human. A woman, a daughter, a wife, a mother, a city-dweller, a friend, a pedestrian, a colleague… even a citizen. I change from one character to another immediately depending on situation. Buying a metro ticket I’m the passenger, standing in the bank queue, I’m the credit card holder. Every person has these characters, and in any moment (if only he’s not sitting on his favorite sofa, thinking about philosophy) he’s playing a role. Lesbian is also a role, because it supposes relationships with other people. Being lesbian in complete loneliness is impossible. If only you imagine another woman, you are not alone in your fictitious world, where Angelina Jolie and Xena the warrior’s princesses live.

A chief editor at a local television channel called homosexuality an “abomination” in a caustic reply to an open letter written by an insulted viewer. The viewer, St. Petersburg resident Maria Yefremenkova, had earlier held a one-woman protest against what she described as a “homophobic” broadcast that “discriminated” against sexual minorities.

One of the programs on the 100tv channel in Saint-Petersburg was on the following topic “Homosexuality – a democracy triumph or a national security threat?” Experts were invited to the studio to discuss a statement of Andrey Kuraev, a deacon, who said that “homosexuality was a crime against childhood”.

What’s a gay pride? When, where and why did it appear? Here is the question. How does it influence the general public’s attitude to LGBT-community? Is it worth holding gay pride in Russia? These and other issues are becoming now the subject not only for discussions inside the LGBT-community, but also for the public discourse in wide sense.

АThe importance and urgency of these questions, the absence of definite answers and the diversity of opinions called forth a discussion within the project “ComingOutInfo”. The discussion was organized by the Petersburg LGBT-organization “Coming Out” on Saturday, May 30th.

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On Summer 2008 while being in the USA, I decided to set up contacts with American LGBT-organizations on behalf of newly formed Saint-Petersburg LGBT-organization “Coming Out”. Being aware of American mentality and community, I had a dim suspicion that they could be rather interested in Russia.

I sent 20 letters which included brief description of “Coming Out” and hope for collaboration to different organizations.

On April 25th the “Silent Flashmob” took place in St. Petersburg. More than 70 representatives of LGBT-community and friendly heterosexuals went into the Nevsky prospect to attract general population’s attention to the problem of silencing the cases of discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity and hate (homophobia) crimes.