Russians tell gay World Cup fans: ‘You’ll be hunted down and stabbed’
Russia and England fans fight (Carl Court/Getty)
Gay football fans have been warned that they will be hunted down and attacked if they go to the World Cup.
Last week, LGBT football fans were “strongly” warned to not “publicly display sexuality” at the World Cup.
The Football Supporters’ Federation said that queer fans should not hold hands or be affectionate towards their partner in public, to ensure their safety.
(Oleg Nikishin/Getty)
And the dangers for supporters who are open with their sexuality have been highlighted by activists, who have reported death threats to the police.
Pride in Football campaign leader Joe White told the Mirror: “We’ve had people say that if they find us they’ll stab us, so it’s been a mixture but they’re being dealt with seriously and those investigations are still ongoing.”
Russian Government minister Mikhail Degtyarev has estimated that around two million people will visit Russia during the World Cup.
Supporters fight at the end of the Euro 2016 match between England and Russia (VALERY HACHE/AFP/Getty)
White told PinkNews that FIFA was “at least pushing the Russian authorities on investigating the threats and they now have, alongside UEFA, sexual orientation and gender identity rights as part of the bidding process.
“But it is ridiculous that they gave the World Cup to Russia and Qatar.”
The 2022 World Cup will be in Qatar, where homosexuality is illegal.
But despite the threats and cautionary advice from advocates, White refused to be cowed.
The activist told the Mirror that the guidelines “had to be very cautious”, but that he was out and proud, and would continue to be.
“I could go out and almost go back into the closet and act butch, but that kind of plays exactly into what we are trying to show is an issue,” said White.
“We shouldn’t have to feel that we have to behave any differently than we would.
(Carl Court/Getty)
“It’s not like I’m going to be sticking my tongue down people’s throats or anything. I’m going out there for the football and to experience the World Cup.”
Hate crimes against LGBT people have doubled in the country since Russia created a law banning gay “propaganda”.
The 2013 legislation, which prohibits “propaganda of non-traditional sexual relationships” towards minors, has been condemned by the European Court of Human Rights.
The European judges found that the law “reinforced stigma and prejudice and encouraged homophobia”.
(VOLODYMYR SHUVAYEV/AFP/Getty)
The law also bans people from sharing “distorted ideas about the equal social value of traditional and non-traditional sexual relationships”.
It has been widely abused by Vladimir Putin’s government to clamp down on the LGBT rights movement as a whole.
Nevertheless, White was determined to stand up and make his identity known while the world’s eyes are on the country in June and July.
(Oleg Nikishin/Getty)
“If it’s safe to do so we’ll be taking rainbow flags, hopefully getting some form of visibility in stadiums to show that LGBT football fans do exist and, just as much as any fan, we’re a valid part of the game,” he said.
“Unless there is someone kind of putting their head above the parapet, it’s very easy for them to say we don’t exist.”
The Russian Government has repeatedly insisted that there are no LGBT people in the country, despite this being false and the inhumane gay purge which took place in Chechnya last year.
(Oleg Nikishin/Getty)
White said: “I think we definitely have a responsibility to highlight any form of inequality.
“Hopefully teams, players and managers can come into that conversation when they feel safe to do so.”
