Russian LGBT Network Shuts Down After Court Labels Organization “Extremist”

The Russian LGBT Network, a public organization that has advocated for LGBT rights in Russia since 2006, has announced that it is shutting down following a decision by the St. Petersburg City Court to designate the organization as “extremist” in April.

In a statement on August 17, the organization said continuing its public activities could expose both its activists and people seeking its assistance to the risk of criminal prosecution.

“We made this decision after carefully assessing the risks. We cannot control the repressive environment, but we can do everything possible not to create additional risks for people. People’s safety comes first,” the organization’s leadership said in a statement on Telegram.

The Russian LGBT Network also announced that its activists would cease operating under the organization’s name and that no one would continue to represent it. Its social media accounts are expected to be removed in the near future.

Founded in 2006, the Russian LGBT Network brought together LGBTQ+ organizations from different regions of Russia and became the country’s largest organization focused on combating discrimination against LGBTQ+ people and protecting their rights, according to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.

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The organization’s activists documented the persecution of queer people in Russia’s North Caucasus and helped evacuate people from the region whose lives or freedom were at risk.

In 2021, Russia’s Justice Ministry added the Russian LGBT Network to its registry of so-called “foreign agents,” the outlet reported.

The closure comes amid continued criminal prosecutions linked to Russia’s designation of the so-called “LGBT movement” as banned. On June 29, a court in Orenburg sentenced three employees of a local LGBTQ+ club to prison terms of up to seven years for allegedly participating in the banned movement.

The Central District Court convicted the owner, art director, and administrator of the “Pose” club under a criminal provision concerning the organization of and participation in an extremist organization.

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