Russia: (Self) Promotion Masquerading As Protest

Right now, Russia’s gay community need all of our support, so I find it confusing when I get a weird feeling in my stomach looking at media brands plastering supportive rainbows over their logos. No one with any basic level of humanity would deny the validity of a support campaign for gay people in Russia. But this type of bland showmanship seems several steps behind even clicktivism in terms of practical action. It’s a very real humanitarian problem, boiled down to a symbol.

When Channel 4 started it, it seemed valid and inventive but now the internet is starting to look like the BBC in November, only instead of poppies, we’re drowning in rainbows. It began with media brands and it was followed by individuals who wish to be media brands themselves. I'm sure that, if you use the internet, you've come across companies or social media users who have joined in. But much like the flowers on Aschrott's Grave, I worry that these rainbow logos have become little more than self-serving monuments.

Ugh, picking a fight with this trend doesn't make me seem like a good person, does it? This whole thing reminds me of Kony 2012. When that film dropped, long before the guy who made it began jerking off in the street, it seemed like a well-intentioned piece of work from people disgusted at the plight of child soldiers in Uganda. And what could be unreasonable about that? Nothing, except the video was such a saccharine piece of propaganda that I was certain something had to be wrong with it. At least on some level, my suspicions were correct. There were questions about the campaign's financial transparency, the company's motive and what would really happen if Uganda were flooded with weapons. I feel the same way today. This is another good cause, but on some fundamental level it feels suspect to me because it is a gutless, tokenistic form of protest...

The Hypocrisy Of The Internet's Sochi Rainbow Protests - Alex Miller, Vice.

PS The Hypocrisy of Vice? The £1billion "edgy" media empire, the Murdochs and corporate "sponsored content".

Russia: I Hope The Russians Love Their Children Too

Nikita Gurjanov, 17, born in Moscow, is at high school in the city’s centre. Nikita has been openly gay since he was sixteen years old, he is a member of Rainbow Association; a large organisation fighting for human rights for LGBT people, but also wants to create his own local-teen organisation in the future. Nikita hosts his own youtube channel, participates in street activism and actively helps teenage LGBT people like him with their problems, mostly to do with ‘coming out’ to their family and peers; “Sometimes young boys and girls write me messages about how they must go about telling their parents, how can they come out, what must they do, they are afraid of society and of showing themselves, I told them everything is normal, they must not be afraid, I even talk with them on Skype and on the mobile, and sometimes I even meet them in real life and help them, if they live in Russia.”

From a photo essay in the Observer Magazine, Gay and lesbian people in Russia.

Like Nikita many people featured are campaigning against homophobia and are promoting homosexuality.

Though oddly none have been arrested under Russia's "draconian anti-gay laws". *

* The Observer claims Kirill Kalugin, above, was arrested last year for staging a one-man gay protest in St Petersburg.
In fact police arrested two drunk paratroopers who attacked him.
Still, we're talking about Russia - why bother with facts?

PS New Vice documentary Young And Gay In Putin's Russia.

Superman: Ban Jokes!

Get a life.
And a sense of fucking humour!
IT'S A JOKE!!!
Just like the Inflatable Gay Best Friend!
They were both jokes - pretty lame jokes maybe - but just that, jokes!
Some gaybores clearly have nothing they can really get angry about.
Really.
Can't believe Vice published this joyless whiney crapola.

Update: Universal Studios pulled the show! 
Though this may be because it was - techical term coming up - "a bit shit".

The Vice Guide To Being Gay: S Is For...

Stereotypes
There is the stereotype of gay men as effeminate, lisping, fashion-obsessed sissies. Which is, generally, a total bummer to have to live with. But it's also kind of liberating. You see, the majority of gays have incredibly bad taste. So if you like a Katy Perry song, or thought Miss Congeniality 2 was a great movie (it is, BTW), you can just come out and say it and nobody's going to give a shit. People are expecting it of you, even. You don't have to pretend you don't like it, the way straight people do.
And let's just be clear here, straight people: you are pretending. That's entertainment that is created in a lab and then focus-grouped 1000 times in order to make it as universally appealing as possible. You're free to not watch it/listen to it. But don't say you hate it. That's like saying you hate the taste of Big Macs because they taste too popular. Have fun tidying your bedroom to that ten-minute ambient Aphex Twin track, guyz!

From the - very, very funny - Vice Guide To Being Gay.