https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._N._Taber
Whatever Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson’s visit to Russia has or has not achieved, it is good that he has focused world attention on Human Rights abuses against LGBT people in Chechnya.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights in Chechnya have long been a cause for concern among human rights organisations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. As a part of the Russian Federation, many of Russia's LGBT laws apply. However, Chechnya is a semi-autonomous republic within Russia's borders, with its own legal code, and the state imposes the death penalty (officially suspended) for men in homosexual relationships. In addition, there are few protections for LGBT citizens, and the government encourages the killing of people suspected of homosexuality by their families.
There are, of course, other countries where LGBT people continue to be persecuted. Here in the so-called ‘liberal’ West, even pro-LGBT legislation is not enough to prevent homophobia from raising its ugly head, especially among some families and communities where various religions professing to be all about peace and love prove – time and again - to be unfit for purpose where LGBT people are concerned.
CLIMATE OF FEAR: A CHECHNYA DIARY
We live and love behind closed doors,
afraid to fling them open wide
even to family in case they might guess
our secret, become accessories
to the fact that we are gay, criminals
in the eyes of lesser gods
We live and love as every chance allows,
stealing precious moments
in secret places, away from prying eyes
and faces that would paint
us as demons in a world of humans
who seek to know no better
We live and love as nature reassures us
we may, day after day,
concealing our dread of discovery by bigots
who would see us dead
rather than acknowledge our place
on the world’s greater stage
We live and love, meant to be together
as sense and sensibility
collude to wish us well with our every blink
of an eye, twitch of a smile
daring broad daylight until darkness falls
on kisses worth dying for…
Copyright R. N. Taber 2017
Whatever Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson’s visit to Russia has or has not achieved, it is good that he has focused world attention on Human Rights abuses against LGBT people in Chechnya.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights in Chechnya have long been a cause for concern among human rights organisations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. As a part of the Russian Federation, many of Russia's LGBT laws apply. However, Chechnya is a semi-autonomous republic within Russia's borders, with its own legal code, and the state imposes the death penalty (officially suspended) for men in homosexual relationships. In addition, there are few protections for LGBT citizens, and the government encourages the killing of people suspected of homosexuality by their families.
There are, of course, other countries where LGBT people continue to be persecuted. Here in the so-called ‘liberal’ West, even pro-LGBT legislation is not enough to prevent homophobia from raising its ugly head, especially among some families and communities where various religions professing to be all about peace and love prove – time and again - to be unfit for purpose where LGBT people are concerned.
CLIMATE OF FEAR: A CHECHNYA DIARY
We live and love behind closed doors,
afraid to fling them open wide
even to family in case they might guess
our secret, become accessories
to the fact that we are gay, criminals
in the eyes of lesser gods
We live and love as every chance allows,
stealing precious moments
in secret places, away from prying eyes
and faces that would paint
us as demons in a world of humans
who seek to know no better
We live and love as nature reassures us
we may, day after day,
concealing our dread of discovery by bigots
who would see us dead
rather than acknowledge our place
on the world’s greater stage
We live and love, meant to be together
as sense and sensibility
collude to wish us well with our every blink
of an eye, twitch of a smile
daring broad daylight until darkness falls
on kisses worth dying for…
Copyright R. N. Taber 2017
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