PROBLEMS OF HOMOSEXUALITY PERCEPTION IN MODERN RUSSIA: GROUNDS OF THE RELEVANT DISCOURSE

Abstract

In 2013, the State Duma of the Russian Federation adopted the Federal Law «On the prohibition of propaganda of nontraditional sexual relations among minors», which provoked a lot of discussions in the media between sexual minorities and their opponents: the former began to criticize this law as the one prejudicing their rights, the latter after a long silence renewed their attacks against homosexuals. It served as a basis for sociologists to assume that homophobia is reviving in Russia. In the article we made an attempt to see into the arguments of opponents of nontraditional sexual orientation and to trace the belief origins of «Russian homophobia». To do this, the authors of this scoping study are trying to answer the following questions: is it correct to justify homosexuality as a norm of behavior, referring to homosexual behavior of animals, to what extent is homosexuality due to the norms of the Russian culture, what its contribution to the art, what do the world religions say about same-sex relationships, what is its impact on the society development, what is the opinion of modern medicine on this phenomenon. In this paper the authors attempt to reproduce the arguments of homophobic logic, which is so widespread in today’s Russia, to understand its origins and ideological grounds. This is done solely in order to find compromises and to develop balanced, tolerant positions from both sides. The authors hope that the ideas expressed in this article will be helpful in the matter of resolving such significant socio-cultural issue as the opposition of homo- and heterosexuals, and will make a modest contribution to the protection of human rights and freedoms in the Russian Federation.

Keywords

• homosexuality
• heterosexuality
• sodomy
• homophobia
• sexual culture
• sexual orientation