The 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia are already off to a rough start. However, the anti-gay violence that is taking place ratchets things up (VIDEO ABOVE- warning, graphic violence). The Human Rights Campaign has put together the above video to document and highlight how innocent people are getting beat up and abused, simply for being gay and for simply speaking out in defense of gay rights. The main culprits appear to be neo-Nazis. The Russian police and government are taking no action to protect people from threats and physical abuse. With Russia's recent "gay propaganda" law and police inaction on this issue, the state is essentially endorsing anti-gay violence.
As a counter-offensive, a group called Athlete Ally is promoting Principle 6 of the Olympic charter which states:
As a counter-offensive, a group called Athlete Ally is promoting Principle 6 of the Olympic charter which states:
Russia is clearly violating Principle 6 through its "gay propaganda" law, and it needs to take action to prevent more violence from occurring.
Thankfully, in addition to the efforts of Athlete Ally, companies like AT&T, Google (my former employer, GO GOOGLE!) are making their voices known that anti-gay discrimination should not be tolerated. We will see if more corporate pressure mounts over the next two weeks during the Olympics. I hope it has the positive effect of the Russian government condemning the violence and moving to prosecute those responsible.
How the Second Amendment protects Freedom
I think about how blessed I am to live in a free country like the United States. In America, we have the Second Amendment to protect against a tyrannical government. Tyrannical, defined:
ty·ran·ni·cal
təˈranikəl/ adjective
1. exercising power in a cruel or arbitrary way
The Russian police and government are not protecting their citizens, and are basically encouraging the violence. It qualifies as state-sponsored violence in my book, and I'd call that tyrannical. This cruel, arbitrary exercising of this power is only targeted at gay people.
If I can't rely on the police to protect me, then the only obvious conclusion is that I am responsible for my own protection. This is why millions of Americans own guns, which is also a primary way of keeping a tyrannical government at bay. On the one hand, I can't imagine the United States ever passing a Russian-style "gay propaganda" law, but in reality there are forms of it at the state level where students and educators can't use the word "gay" or talk about homosexuality in K-12 public schools. It's laws like these that could eventually push things to a tyrannical extreme.
If America ever did become a tyrannical state, I'd at least have my firearms as a way to protect myself. Unless that tyranny included disarmament. While Russians are allowed to own personal firearms for self-defense, they must apply for a permit. However, handgun ownership is banned so having one for conceal carry is a no-no unless you want to break the law defending yourself.
I wonder if the Russian government would approve a permit application from an anti-gay hate crime victim? My guess is that they would deny it and provide the reason mentioned by Russian police in the above video: "you're gay so it's normal that you were attacked. Why would you need to [protect yourself] against someone?"
Irrational, inhumane, and just wrong. Governments should not condone violence or discrimination against any peaceful group.
Thankfully, in addition to the efforts of Athlete Ally, companies like AT&T, Google (my former employer, GO GOOGLE!) are making their voices known that anti-gay discrimination should not be tolerated. We will see if more corporate pressure mounts over the next two weeks during the Olympics. I hope it has the positive effect of the Russian government condemning the violence and moving to prosecute those responsible.
How the Second Amendment protects Freedom
I think about how blessed I am to live in a free country like the United States. In America, we have the Second Amendment to protect against a tyrannical government. Tyrannical, defined:
ty·ran·ni·cal
təˈranikəl/ adjective
1. exercising power in a cruel or arbitrary way
The Russian police and government are not protecting their citizens, and are basically encouraging the violence. It qualifies as state-sponsored violence in my book, and I'd call that tyrannical. This cruel, arbitrary exercising of this power is only targeted at gay people.
If I can't rely on the police to protect me, then the only obvious conclusion is that I am responsible for my own protection. This is why millions of Americans own guns, which is also a primary way of keeping a tyrannical government at bay. On the one hand, I can't imagine the United States ever passing a Russian-style "gay propaganda" law, but in reality there are forms of it at the state level where students and educators can't use the word "gay" or talk about homosexuality in K-12 public schools. It's laws like these that could eventually push things to a tyrannical extreme.
If America ever did become a tyrannical state, I'd at least have my firearms as a way to protect myself. Unless that tyranny included disarmament. While Russians are allowed to own personal firearms for self-defense, they must apply for a permit. However, handgun ownership is banned so having one for conceal carry is a no-no unless you want to break the law defending yourself.
I wonder if the Russian government would approve a permit application from an anti-gay hate crime victim? My guess is that they would deny it and provide the reason mentioned by Russian police in the above video: "you're gay so it's normal that you were attacked. Why would you need to [protect yourself] against someone?"
Irrational, inhumane, and just wrong. Governments should not condone violence or discrimination against any peaceful group.
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