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Equality

Putin Expands ‘Gay Propaganda’ Ban, Threatening LGBTQ Crackdown

  • Move outlaws portrayal of gay relations in books, films, media
  • Measure expands law to cover adults as well as children
People wave rainbow flags during a rally in Saint Petersburg in 2017. 

People wave rainbow flags during a rally in Saint Petersburg in 2017. 

Photographer: Olga Maltseva/AFP/Getty Images
By
Bloomberg News

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed into law on Monday a sweeping ban on the positive portrayal of gay relationships in books, films, the media and the Internet, regardless of age.

The ban on “propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations” expands Russia’s 2013 law that prohibited the promotion of homosexuality to children. The new legislation now makes it illegal to present positive images to adults of gay relationships in media and advertising.