5.

Global Culture Clash 1/24/19

The Chechen Purge

 Reports as of Monday, January 14th claim that there are two deaths in Chechnya, a federal

subject of Russia, as a result of an anti-gay purge that has once again gained traction in the

region, (Roth, 2019). The reports were later confirmed by Russia’s LGBT Network, which now

marks the second time in less than two years that Chechnya authorities have made arrests of

suspected gay or lesbian individuals and proceeded to imprison and subject them to torture. Back

in 2017, hundreds of men were detained as a part of this attempted purge, which drew global

attention back to the region for their human rights violations, (Prilutskaya, 2019). Because the

Chechen Republic is under Russian control, who is a signatory to multiple international human

rights treaties, the attention gained from the reports of mistreatment did eventually lead to a halt

of arrests. However, Russia has appeared to drag their feet in putting an end to the issue, and

despite an absolutely horrid testimony from Maxim Lapunov, the only victim to speak openly

about his experiences, Russian authorities claimed they could not prove that any of Lapunov’s

claims were truthful and thus did not open a criminal investigation regarding the matter,

(Prilutskaya, 2019).

Now, beginning in December of 2018, the arrests have started up again, which started

with an administrator for an online group for LGBT people. Once authorities detained him, they

used the contacts from his phone to find others suspected of homosexuality, (Roth, 2019). With

the lack of action that was taken by the Russian government the first time around, and now with

a second wave of brutality that has already ended two lives, it appears that the conflict between

the LGBT community and Russian culture has not only lingered but worsened to deadly levels

once again.

Laws criminalizing homosexuality have fluctuated throughout Russia’s history. In the

early nineteenth century, the Tsarist regime criminalized male homosexuality; however, when
the Bolshevik revolution rolled around in 1917, it was decriminalized as a result of a new code

being put in place. According to author and journalist Masha Gessen, this did not mean that

attitudes regarding homosexuality had shifted, rather just part of a total reform of government

that was a result of wanting to cleanse the nation of their previous regime, (Quince & Phillips,

2013). The lack of acceptance for homosexuality in Russia was once again highlighted when

Joseph Stalin came to power, eventually passing a law in 1934 that allowed for the arrest and

conviction of homosexuals and remained in effect until after the fall of the USSR, (Quince,

2013). From 1960 to 1990, anywhere from 500 to 1,000 were imprisoned annual under that law

(Schaaf, 2014, p. 24). The origin of conflict between homosexuality and the bigger, more

standardized culture often lies within religious practices and beliefs, and it is no different in

Russia. Homophobic attitudes and tendencies have been deeply embedded in their culture for

centuries, most likely as a result of religious beliefs that center around traditional family

structures built from heterosexual relationships.

Today, the Russian Orthodox church’s values are still very opposed to the homosexual

lifestyle, and the changes in the modern world have only amplified their opposition. Political

globalization has played a huge role in the perception and acceptance of homosexuality

throughout the world. As westernization progresses and spreads, there has been a trend towards

legalizing same-sex marriage, starting with the Netherlands in 2001. As of 2017, same-sex

marriage is now legal in 26 countries, (Perper, 2017). For Russia, where a vast majority of its

people are opposed to same-sex marriage, this trend is frightening. “The patriarch of the Russian

Orthodox Church has stated that the international trend toward legalizing same-sex marriage is a

sign of the coming apocalypse, so that establishes gays and lesbians as a sort of larger-life-

threat,” (Quince & Phillips, 2013).

 Evidence of globalization’s effect on the current struggle for the LGBT struggle within

Russia can be found in both the action and lack of action made towards the arrests and tortures

occurring in Chechnya. The attention and pressure for the rest of the world on the recent events

in Chechnya may be feeding into the fear complex that is being fostered by the Russian

Orthodox Church, creating the effect that Russian culture and values are being threatened by the

liberal idea of acceptance of all sexualities. This mentality was seen in Zimbabwe in the 1990s,

when the president at the time, Robert Mugabe, claimed that gay and lesbian equality was a

“symptom of cultural imperialism” and “[a sign] of Western influence and the deterioration of

local culture,” (Reid, 2011). This idea can cultivate a strong feeling of protectiveness for one’s

culture and result in out lash against whatever is seen as the threat, in this case, the LGBT

community, and lead to an increase in tensions.

However, the process of globalization can also aid in putting situations like this in check.

“The forces of globalization have led to the spread of Western-style democracy… and an

increased concentration of power in the hands of international institutions of governance,”

(Sorrells, 2016, p. 44). As aforementioned, Russia is a signatory to human rights treaties,

including the European Convention of Human Rights, which they signed in 1996. Because of

this, if crimes or violations against this treaty (or others like it) can be proven, Russia can face

consequences. They’ve been fined by the European Court of Human Rights for encouraging

homophobia and discrimination in the past, (NBC News, 2018). It was scrutiny from courts like

this one that put a halt to the arrests originally in 2017, proving that Russia is not immune to

world-wide criticism, (Prilutskaya, 2019). International governing bodies such as this are a direct

result of globalization, and they might make all the difference in preventing human right

violations or further violence within the country.

 The situation is only being egged on through media coverage and laws within the region.

Legislation against “gay propaganda” started to come about in 2006, defining it as “The

uncontrolled and goal directed distribution of information that can cause harm to the physical or

spiritual development of minors, including forming in them the erroneous impression of social

equality of tradition and non-traditional marital relations,” (Quince & Phillips, 2013). Television

campaigns against homosexuality began running once the gay propaganda law hit the national

level. Ramzan Kadyrov, the Chechen leader, is a constant fixture in the media. The regular

mention of his name on the news and radio stations makes it hard for people to forget the strict

laws in the area, and his strong views against the LGBT community, (Priluskaya, 2019). Overall,

the media coverage within the region has only increased the demonization of LGBT people as

well instilled a deep sense of fear within the population. The cultivated fear against the LGBT

community on top of the larger-than-life presence of the Chechen leader has only worsened the

conflict.

Organizations like the Russian LGBT Network, which is based in St. Petersburg, have

worked to evacuate LGBT people from the area and get them to safety before they can be

prosecuted. Other human rights activists have also worked to appeal to the Russian government

to interfere with the prosecutions considering the brutality of it all, but those who speak out take

great risk as they also face harsh repercussions, so it’s very difficult to try and resist and spark

change, (Roth, 2019). Aside from the brave few who are trying to resist, most of the population

remains complicit in the situation due to the prominent conservative attitudes towards

homosexuality. Also, law enforcement has not offered protection to those could be potential

victims, actually going as far to encourage people to kill any of their homosexual relatives before

authorities can do it for them, (Ingber, 2019).

 Ultimately, the conflict in Chechenya between the LGBT community and the government

and dominant population is one that can be traced back decades. It has only escalated in the past

couple of years with the growing impact of globalization which brings the “threat” of universal

legalization of same-sex marriage. Taking a look at the situation through the scope of

globalization that we discussed in class aided in giving me a better understanding of how this

conflict could have escalated to this severity in 2019 while also making me wonder why further

steps have not yet been taken to end these horrid crimes and murders. This experience has made

me see that values as deeply embedded into a culture as the extreme homophobia is in

Chechenya are not going to just go away, and they need to be taken seriously and handled firmly.

It appears that limited progress has been made in changing the attitudes of the Chechen people

and will probably be difficult to do so effectively short-term. However, I feel that international

governance bodies have an important role to play in interfering in the situation to assure these

people have access to all basic human rights, including safety, despite these dangerous attitudes.

Understanding this situation from all angles is important in going forward with the hopes of

defusing the conflict quickly and efficiently.

 References

Ingber, S. (2019, January 14). Activists say 40 detained and 2 dead in gay purge in Chechnya.

NPR. Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/2019/01/14/685192372/activists-say-40-

detained-and-2-dead-in-gay-purge-in-chechnya

NBC News. (2018, November 27). Russia's ban on LGBTQ rallies violates rights, European

court rules. Retrieved from https://www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/russia-s-ban-

lgbtq-rallies-violates-rights-european-court-rules-n940771

Perper, R. (2017, November 18). The 26 countries around the world where same-sex marriage is

legal. Business Insider. Retrieved from https://www.businessinsider.com/where-is-same-

sex-marriage-legal-world-2017-11

Prilutskaya, N. (2019, January 17). Putin has given Chechnya free rein to persecute LGBTI

people. Retrieved from https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2019/01/putin-has-

given-chechnya-free-rein-to-persecute-lgbti-people/

Quince, A., & Phillips, K. (2013, December 4). The history of homosexuality in Russia: from

Soviet sex changes to gay gulags. Retrieved from

https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/rearvision/the-history-of-homosexuality-

in-russia/5134412

Reid, G. (2011, November 2). A globalized LGBT rights fight. GlobalPost. Retrieved from

https://www.hrw.org/news/2011/11/02/globalized-lgbt-rights-fight

Roth, A. (2019, January 14). Chechnya: two dead and dozens held in LGBT purge, says

activists. The Guardian [Moscow]. Retrieved from

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jan/14/chechnya-two-dead-and-dozens-held-

in-lgbt-purge-reports
Schaff, M. (2014). Advocating for equality: A brief history of LGBT rights in Russia. Harriman

Magazine, pp. 23-27. Retrieved from

http://www.columbia.edu/cu/creative/epub/harriman/2014/winter/advocating_for_equalit

y.pdf

Sorrells, K. (2016). Understanding the context of globalization. In Intercultural

Communication: Globalization and Social Justice (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE

Publications.