Statistics of gays in the world. “Dozens are dying just because they are gay. What “social gay experiments” don’t say

Russia and Moldova are the two European countries where the situation for LGBT people is the worst. Moreover, from 2013 to 2014, Russia’s rating fell by two units to -4 ½. It is not clear why the Russian Federation, which is already treated with skepticism in the developed world, on its own initiative worsens its image even more, although we do not need this.

A study on LGBT rights was carried out in May 2012 by the public organization ILGA-Europe. Russia is in last place in its ranking. Even in Muslim Turkey and Azerbaijan, the situation of sexual minorities is better than in our country.

The rating was compiled after another tightening of legislation in Russia regarding persons of non-traditional orientation (the so-called “ban on the promotion of homosexuality among minors”). There is no doubt that by the end of 2013, Russia's rating will collapse again, to the levels characteristic of fundamentalist countries on the Arabian Peninsula.

Direct discrimination against LGBT people is prohibited in Russia, but European social activists highlight many indirect factors that infringe on the rights of these people. Here's just one example. The age of consent is the same for both same-sex and different-sex contacts (16 years). But at the beginning of 2012, discriminatory norms of a different nature were introduced into the Criminal Code of Russia. All of them relate to responsibility for sexual relations with persons under 16 years of age.

Firstly, liability for such acts is established, including in the form of imprisonment for a term of up to 4 years, if persons are of different sexes, and up to 6 years, if persons of the same sex. Secondly, if the age difference between persons who entered into sexual contact is less than four years, then in the case of opposite-sex contacts, punishment in the form of imprisonment cannot be applied. Same-sex sexual conduct is not subject to the same limitation of liability. Thirdly, if after sexual contacts the persons enter into marriage, the adult is exempt from punishment. Since same-sex marriages are not celebrated in Russia, a similar provision cannot be applied in the case of homosexual relationships.

In Europe, the main complaints of “rainbow social activists” are discrimination against transsexuals (persons who have changed their gender). Their rights are often violated during employment, in medical institutions, etc. This often leads to a disturbance in the psychosomatic state of such persons.

For example, in Ireland, 26% of transgender people have attempted suicide at least once. Half of the transgender people surveyed in Sweden had thought about suicide at some point in their lives, and 21% had actually attempted it.

Russia differs from the overwhelming majority of European countries in the gradual deterioration of LGBT rights from year to year. Why the ruling circles are doing this is unclear. The image of Russia as a secular, European state is already not the best, and the authorities themselves are diligently worsening it even more.

The map below shows that in 2011 Russia was not in last place in the ranking - the situation was worse than in Ukraine and Belarus (in this ranking the maximum positive value was not 30, but 17 units, negative – minus 7 units ). Over the year, the situation with LGBT rights in Ukraine and Belarus has improved.

Appearing worse than you really are is the Kremlin’s new strategy in the external and internal arena. She looks like a teenage gopnik in a dark alley, who diligently fakes a breaking voice to match the hoarse fenya of a seasoned urchin - maybe they won’t be able to tell the difference in the dark.

The views of the majority of citizens and the majority of deputies about the promotion of homosexuality in 2013 completely coincide, sociologists from the Levada Center have found out. 61% of respondents are afraid that their children and grandchildren may become victims of such propaganda, and 67% welcome its ban. Moreover, this concept is interpreted extremely broadly: half of those surveyed consider even personal communication with homosexuals to be propaganda. Over the past 5 years, Russians' attitude towards homosexuality has noticeably worsened.

The only position in which Russians have become more tolerant is the desire to eliminate homosexuals. If in 1989 this proposal was supported by 35% of respondents, then in 2008 - only 19%. Today, Russians are more likely to isolate or treat such people (a total of 38%).

In Russia, a theoretical basis is being laid to explain the “phenomenon” of homosexuality – as a sociocultural phenomenon. Moreover, even in academic circles. Head of the Department of Family Sociology, Faculty of Sociology, Moscow State University. M.V. Lomonosov, Doctor of Philosophy, Professor Anatoly Antonov gives the following arguments:

“Having one child is a very negative factor. In all these families, as a rule, the woman dominates. And in those families where the only child is a son, an alliance, a coalition, as psychologists say, is formed between mother and son. The normal coalition that is observed in families with several children is father-mother, husband-wife, and contact between brothers and sisters. This is disrupted in a one-child family, where there is a struggle for the child between father and mother, but most often the mother wins.

There is reason to believe that the influence and dominance of a mother over her son creates a situation where the mother blocks the image of the mother, the symbol of the mother, the figure of the dominant mother block all contacts with other women for the only son. And when communicating with other women, he always sees his mother in front of him. Thank God, in our culture, incest with one’s mother is taboo. And therefore, in sociocultural terms, many such sons have a taboo not only on sexual contact with their mother, but also with women in general. It is this sociocultural socio-psychological mechanism that, when having one child, contributes to the development of homosexuality

1. homosexual inclinations are formed in a person either during fetal development or in early childhood and subsequently cannot be changed,


2. the percentage of homosexuals in the human population is more or less the same, it has not changed from ancient times to the present day and does not depend on political, religious and other attitudes in society, as well as the level of development of this society (with the exception of some situations of extremely unfavorable living conditions, for example, overpopulation and poor ecology in large cities, under such conditions the percentage of homosexual deviations may be higher, as, indeed, of all other deviations),


3. Homosexual behavior occurs in many other species (some count as many as 450 species).

The law banning gay propaganda adopted in Russia has led to an explosive increase in murders and violence against people of non-traditional sexual orientation. This conclusion was reached by a candidate of sociological sciences, an employee of the European University in St. Petersburg and the Center for Independent Sociological Research. He recently published a monograph, “Hate Crime against LGBT People in Russia,” which is based on an analysis of court cases where the sexual orientation of the defendants is mentioned in one way or another. The researcher spoke about where it is dangerous to demonstrate non-traditional sexuality, why judges sympathize with gays, and Russian science considers the LGBT topic marginal.

“Lenta.ru”: In your work it is said that on average 20-35 crimes are committed against lesbians and homosexuals per year. Nationally, the numbers are not shocking.

Kondakov: We are not saying that our study presents the complete picture. The statistics are incomplete, but they give an idea of ​​trends. Today, for the police, hate crimes against LGBT people do not exist. In addition, in our work we relied on data from the most reliable, but also the most conservative source - the court. The statistics we collected are official, but unofficially summarized in the process of scientific work. And regarding the fact that the numbers do not amaze the imagination... Even when one person dies, this is a tragedy. And here dozens die just because they are gays and lesbians.

What does it mean: “information is unofficially summarized”?

Since there are practically no officially registered cases of hatred towards the sexual orientation of the victim - only two cases have been encountered in all this time - we had to look for them. We have compiled a list of keywords that judges and prosecutors usually use to refer to non-traditional sexual orientation. There are many of them: homosexuality, gay, sodomy, LGBT, etc. And then they entered these synonyms into the publicly available judicial decision search systems “Justice” and “Rospravosudie”. We collected data from 2010 to 2015.

What trend have you noticed?

If before 2013 there were an average of 32 cases motivated by hatred against LGBT people, in 2015 there were already 65. There is a sharp increase in crimes in this segment. And another thing is that they started killing more.

Why do you think that aggression towards LGBT people is on the rise, and not crime in general?

If you look at the statistics of ordinary murders in Russia during this period, the figures have really increased. But not at this pace. There's a double jump here. The trend is visible not only in official court decisions. At the same time, my team and I analyzed media reports. There has also been a serious increase in violence against LGBT people. In 2011, the press covered 51 episodes. In 2015 - about 67, in 2016 - about 85.

Can you name the cities where such crimes are committed most often?

I would not name specific regions. For example, in the Caucasus such crimes are practically not registered. But not because they don't exist. It’s just that those in charge hide information and are ashamed to talk about crimes based on sexuality. Based on data from the media, we compared different types of settlements in terms of safety for LGBT people. The safest megacities in this regard. The smaller the population center, the higher the risk for LGBT people of becoming a victim of violence. This is intuitively clear: big cities are more tolerant of diversity, including sexual diversity.

Fried the heart and ate it

On February 16, 2014, at night, while he was on, he [the accused] waited until K.A.S. will leave Z.’s household, where they previously drank alcohol together. Due to personal hostility towards the said person, which arose as a result of the latter’s proposal to commit an act of sodomy, the accused struck him about 4 times on the head with a nail puller, then cut out and took out the latter’s heart with a knife, which he fried and ate at home. He recorded this process on his phone’s video camera, accompanying it with his comments.”
(Verdict in case 2–4/2015, Volgograd).

***
“There was a small metal iron on the toilet tank, he [the accused] grabbed it and started swinging it at the man. The man began to scream and call for help, while running towards the corridor. In the corridor, he caught up with the man and hit him on the back with an iron, the man bent down, and he hit him again on the head. The man fell and hit his head on a dumbbell that was on the floor. He threw the iron on the floor and went to wash his hands. When I washed my hands, I saw that the man got up and headed towards the door. He grabbed an ashtray from the table and began hitting the man in the head. He doesn’t remember how many blows he struck, but he hit him a lot until he began to wheeze.”
(Verdict in case 1–122/2013, Moscow).

Is hatred of sexual orientation an aggravating circumstance in court?

Hatred towards a certain social group of people is indeed punished more severely in Russian legislation. But when it comes to sexual orientation, judges are uncomfortable applying this provision. Therefore, court decisions often do not mention this circumstance. However, informal acceptance of this motive can be observed through the imposition of a more severe sentence. The terms for such murders are on average a year longer than for similar ones.

Similar - what is it?

When a gay man is killed, but hatred is not the motive. For example, murders during a quarrel. Hate crimes against LGBT people are brutal. In my report I cited cases where they eat parts of their victim’s body, strangle them with bags, and rape them with combs. That is, they are doing something out of the ordinary.

Dislike for LGBT people today is becoming one of the bonds of Russian society - Orthodoxy, patriotism, traditional values ​​(read traditional sexual orientation). Are the judges really ready to quietly shake the general line?

Judges are not mechanical agents of state policy. Naturally, they have their own practices of informal resistance. The most common case is suspended sentences. In Russian courts, acquittals are rarely handed down - this is the custom. But there is also an informal practice: to punish, to recognize a criminal offense as having taken place, but not to send the person to prison, to give a suspended sentence. This can be called the resistance of judges to a system of not very fair justice. And informal recognition of the motive of hatred through stricter sentences can be called such resistance to today's political agenda.

Who is more likely to experience violence: gays, lesbians, transgender people?

It's hard to say. Most of the cases in our database operate under the general concept: “persons with non-traditional sexual orientation.” That's what judges call them. But what they mean is not clear. We are mainly talking about gay men, but it can also include bisexual and transgender men. It is very difficult to find out that the text of a court decision concerns a lesbian specifically. Judges extremely rarely use the word with the root “lesbian”; they call them “and other actions of a sexual nature.” And this definition includes everything that does not correspond to heterosexual genital contact.

Will the sexual tolerance of Russians somehow stand out from other countries?

We compared only with North America, looking at murders motivated by sexual hatred. If we take the murder index (the number of crimes per 100 thousand population - approx. "Tapes.ru"), in Russia until 2012 the level was approximately the same as in the United States. And then we began to grow sharply. In the United States, the number of such crimes has not changed. We can say that now the situation in Russia is about 2.5 times worse than in America, although not everything is good there either. Downtown New York may be safe. And in some Texas outback, they may well beat you up or kick you out of a restaurant. But even there things are better than here.

Do you attribute the increase in crimes to the adoption of a law banning gay propaganda?

Yes. So far I don't see any other reasons. The law came into force in 2013. Perhaps the increased negativity caused it to be discussed in the media. If you remember, the main channels of the country then showed pseudo-documentaries and news stories that were filled with hostility towards LGBT people. It stated in plain text that homosexuals are inferior. Therefore, some Russians decided that they needed to act - to cleanse the country of sodomites. Even entire groups of citizens have appeared who specifically unite to search for gays on various social networks, harass them, and blackmail them.

There is a theory that the number of people with non-traditional orientation is always stable - only 1-2 percent. Do you agree?

These are rhetorical structures. Now science cannot say where homosexuality comes from. There are different theories on this matter. Depending on which one you want to apply, you can specify one or another number of people who would correspond to the desired version. That is, I would not take any numbers on faith.

But can we say that the LGBT community is expanding today?

I repeat once again - how to count. Let’s say there are even fewer people identifying themselves as gays and lesbians. Because new ways of identifying oneself in society are emerging: panromantics, post-gay, intersex, etc. The spectrum of sexuality is wide and introduces new terms all the time.

The ranks of heterosexuals are also heterogeneous. There are, for example, BDSM lovers (they can be of any sexual orientation), swingers, sapiosexuals, etc. That is, people begin to recognize themselves with great nuances. But when questions are asked about the growth of the LGBT community, what they usually mean is - can the population of these people be increased through propaganda? Science gives a clear answer to this: no.

When the state puts pressure on LGBT people through laws and information resources, is this a request from society?

Rather, the state comes up with the idea that it acts at the request of society. If you look at public opinion polls, you can see that hostility towards LGBT people is growing. But what kind of public opinion are we talking about: expected answers or a clearly formed position? More about the first one. Look at how the questions themselves are formulated in the questionnaire. There are four possible answers about attitudes towards LGBT people. However, three of them are negative. Is it possible to expect an adequate result in this case?

So the question of the complete homophobia of Russian society is not so simple. There is shyness in relation to any problems of sexuality. But not necessarily hostility.

One of the conspiracy theories is the blue lobby, which is formed among high-ranking officials and politicians. Judging by the situation in the country, is this a myth?

The question is worthy of study. I don't know anything about this. It may very well be that representatives of one social group, people who see commonality with each other on some basis, will help each other. Is this possible in theory? Yes. Are there people of homosexual orientation in today's government - for sure. So, anything is possible.

Is the topic of LGBT considered marginal in the Russian scientific world?

There are practically no monographs or dissertations on this issue. There are individual scientists interested in this topic. But the works mainly concern psychology. There is little research on anthropology, sociology, or politics regarding LGBT people. Scientific grants were not allocated specifically for this issue. If you apply for funding on some social issue related to LGBT people, there is a high probability that you will not be approved, since the topic is considered impractical.

One colleague told me that the LGBT topic is not fundamental, that is, it is a private, small issue. It's strange though. The state is passing a law on this problem, and this is constantly discussed in the media. But society actually knows nothing about homosexuality in Russia: how, where, with whom, who. These issues are completely ignored. Or an ideological approach is taken to the problem. Publications appear in scientific (!!!) journals, which present the following theses: homosexuality is a sin, same-sex marriage is destroying Russia, etc. No evidence-based scientific argumentation is provided.

Why did you take up this issue? Aren't you afraid that some shadow will also fall on you as a scientist?

In the scientific field, as a researcher, I do not feel any stigma. I have been dealing with these issues for almost ten years now. Another thing is that there are some groups that have paid attention to me and write nasty things on social networks. But I’m interested in this issue, because in Russia no one is seriously involved in LGBT issues, which means that the pioneers have a lot of discoveries ahead of them.

Abroad, the scientific community also did not accept issues of non-traditional sexual relationships for a long time. How did they overcome this?

Of course, they also ignored this for a long time. Changes occurred in the 1960s-80s. In the United States, many leading universities have established departments for the study of LGBT history and sociology. Since many famous educational institutions in America are private, all this was financed by philanthropists. In European countries, these topics began to be studied at the instigation of the state. There gradually came an understanding that LGBT issues can also lead to more general issues: what sexuality is, sexual relations within society.

But in Russian science, like once in the USSR, there is no sex?

The situation in Russia is different. We have the legacy of the Soviet era, in which the social sciences and humanities had to conform to a single methodological, theoretical and political standard, that is, the party line and Marxism-Leninism. Today there is no Leninism, but the party line remains. And out of habit, scientists are still perceived as conductors of this line and servants of the state. But that's not true. The most important function of science is to critically rethink the surrounding reality, and not to search for evidence that the government is taking the right steps. But, unfortunately, we have not been able to rethink the relationship between the state and scientists.

Last week, Bloomberg published a ranking of countries based on the degree of depravity of their inhabitants. The propensity of citizens to an immoral lifestyle was determined based on a set of data on the amount of alcohol, cigarettes, various drugs consumed and losses from gambling as a percentage of GDP. Zambia turned out to be the most innocent country in the world, but Russia was among the ten most vicious. You can find out which countries made up her company on this list from our selection.

(Total 10 photos)

The Czech Republic turned out to be the most vicious country in the world. Moreover, it was “let down” by the population’s love not so much for beer and absinthe (the Czech Republic is only in 4th place in terms of alcohol consumption), but for drugs - here the Czechs ended up in second place after successfully avoiding getting into the US top ten. Oddly enough, the Czech Republic ranks 1st in the world in cannabis consumption. At the same time, Holland did not even enter the top ten leaders in this indicator.

2. Slovenia

Slovenia, it seems, ended up on this list completely by accident. This country is not in the lead (or even in the top three) in any of the indicators. Apparently, the people of Slovenia adhere to the principle of “a little bit of everything,” which is why they ended up in second place as the most vicious countries in the world.

3. Australia

Australians are the most addicted to ecstasy in the world. Australia is also third in the world in terms of gambling losses and amphetamine use.

4. Armenia

Armenia is on this list mainly because of the gambling habits of its residents. In terms of gambling losses as a percentage of GDP, the country is in second place and second only to the Philippines.

5. Bulgaria

Bulgaria turned out to be the most smoking country in the world. This is an average of 2,822 cigarettes per year per adult resident of the country.

6. Spain

This beautiful country, known throughout the world for its wine, is discredited by the inhabitants’ addiction not to it at all, but to cocaine - here the Spaniards have the maximum rate. We suspect that the island of Ibiza, famous for its nightclubs, plays a significant role in this story. What is noteworthy is that Colombia, known as one of the main producers and suppliers of cocaine in the world, according to Bloomberg, practically does not use it itself.

7. Bosnia and Herzegovina

Residents of Bosnia and Herzegovina drink the least alcohol of any country on this list. And according to Bloomberg, people drink the least in the world in Lebanon. Bosnia and Herzegovina's place on this list was mainly due to its residents' addiction to smoking and gambling.

Did you think that Bloomberg's addiction to vodka tarnished him in the eyes of analysts? - not at all! Our country ranks modestly 6th in the world in alcohol consumption, 3rd in cigarette consumption and 2nd after the United States in opioid consumption. But in Russia, according to Bloomberg, there are now virtually no losses from gambling - here, along with El Salvador and Guatemala, we have the lowest rate in the world.

So much so that they even kill.

To a European resident, it may seem that the fight for LGBT rights is coming to an end. Throughout Europe, Australia, North America and most countries in South America, same-sex marriage and homosexuality are legal and openly discussed. Only the most narrow-minded bigot would think that sexual orientation can be a reason for condemnation.

But in many countries around the world the situation is completely different. In particular, Russia introduced a law this year banning the promotion of homosexuality, which was followed by a wave of attacks against gays and lesbians. There are hundreds of governments around the world that are still doing their best to make life miserable for sexual minorities. In some states where they live under Sharia law, they are executed, while in other countries homosexuals are thrown into prison to rot. Here are nine countries where LGBT people are truly hated.

(Total 9 photos)

For a country that considers itself the “world's largest democracy,” India's habit of turning a blind eye to the rights of sexual minorities is highly questionable. A case in point is the resumption of criminal liability for homosexuality.

In 2009, the Delhi High Court struck down a 153-year-old law passed by the British colonial government that made sex between two adults of the same sex a crime. It was hailed as a huge step forward in the fight for gay rights in the country, with many suggesting it was the start of a new era of LGBT tolerance.

But that was not the case: in December 2013, the court overturned its decision, again making relations between LGBT people illegal. Thanks to the efforts of a handful of fanatics, those found accidentally kissing someone of the same sex face up to ten years in prison. Surely this is the way to convince everyone that “democracy” is truly thriving in India.

2. Northern Cyprus

Northern Cyprus is a disputed territory on the edge of Europe: an unrecognized country that is technically part of the European Union, but is under Turkish occupation. It is the only place in Europe where state-sponsored homophobia is still practiced.

According to Section 171 in the country's statute book, gay sex is completely illegal and punishable by up to five years in prison, and this isn't just some weird old law that wasn't repealed in time. In 2012, there were waves of arrests of LGBT people in the country; the government considered the waste of time and effort of the police and public funds to capture people with non-traditional orientation to be a reasonable step.

It is noteworthy that Cyprus has no laws prohibiting homosexuality, but due to the occupation, adults in the north of the country are forced to fear for their safety.

3. Singapore

The city-state on the edge of the Malay Peninsula is an extremely conservative place, so perhaps it is not surprising that homosexuality is considered illegal there. Another strange thing is that gay men and women are treated differently in this country. Since 2007, sexual relations between two women are considered absolutely legal, but sex between two men risks imprisonment for up to two years.

True, this law is rarely observed, and there are every sign that attitudes towards homosexuals in Singapore will soon become less strict. However, there are fines for the media if they show homosexuality in anything other than a negative light - for example, some TV stations have already paid these fines for showing a simple interview with a gay celebrity.

Of course, Singapore is far from the worst place on our list, but this country is not yet ready to accept people as they are.

If you want to know what it's like to live in constant fear, try coming out as gay in Jamaica. LGBT people are often attacked with machetes and beaten just as often. In 2010, for example, a 16-year-old boy was hacked to death in his own home for suspicions of having sex with a man. People are often stabbed or set on fire for suspicion of homosexuality, and during gay funerals, processions are attacked by people armed with stones and bottles.

The government supports it: if you have sex with someone of the same sex in Jamaica, you face up to ten years in prison... that's if you're lucky. If you're unlucky, the local police will extort money from you, torture you, or beat you to a pulp before throwing you in jail. Jamaica is a living hell on earth for local LGBT people.

Most states in Africa are, at best, unapproving of LGBT people. At worst, they are furiously persecuted. There are, of course, a few notable exceptions, such as South Africa or Mozambique, but in general the continent does not like gays and lesbians. In Uganda, hatred reaches frightening proportions.

If you, as a Ugandan, have sex with someone of the same sex, you risk spending the next 14 years of your life in one of the worst prisons on Earth. People have sometimes been arrested and exiled from the country for a song or play that mentions homosexuality, and the police humiliate gay people as much as possible. LGBT rights activists face government persecution on a daily basis, and newspapers have previously published the names and addresses of gays along with incitement to lynching.

But even these horrors cannot compare with the “kill the gay” bill - in other words, homosexuality is now punishable by death. So, in Uganda, the authorities are very concerned about what people do in bed, and are ready to kill them just for it.

6. Nigeria

Nigeria is perhaps the most homophobic place on Earth. When asked whether homosexuality should be accepted by society, 98% of respondents answered “no.” This deep hatred is especially deep-rooted in the northern regions of the country, where the population lives under Sharia law - here homosexuality is punishable by death. Specifically, the law states that gays must be stoned to death, an inhumane form of execution that disappeared in the rest of the world during the Dark Ages.

In the Christian south the situation is not much better. Homosexuality is now punishable by 14 years in prison, and last year a law was passed that says people can't make the mistake of accusing someone of homosexuality.

7. Afghanistan

Afghanistan is the epitome of a strict heterosexual culture. Even though this is a place where old men can have sex with nine-year-old boys, it is illegal for a homosexual to be here. While in areas controlled by the Karzai government they are no longer executed, outside of these areas a homosexual has a very high chance of being killed.

It is also known about “honor killings” - runaway wives and daughters who refuse to marry old people are killed. Homosexuals in Afghanistan are another type of target, but they can be dealt with “gently”, for example, forced into marriage under threat of expulsion from the country. The situation could get even worse in the near future.

Although homosexuality is not considered a crime in Turkey, extreme violence is often used against LGBT people. If you are, for example, a transgender woman living in Turkey, you may be suddenly arrested, blackmailed by the police, and severely beaten in prison. 89% of transgender women detained have been attacked, and it is not uncommon for them to be killed or maimed by strangers.

The killing of homosexuals in “honor killings” has reached epidemic proportions, and very often police and courts are reluctant to press charges. LGBT organizations and related websites are often shut down, and homophobia in Turkey is widespread across all classes of society.

And this is happening in a country that wants to become part of the European Union, a country that prides itself on being a modern, 21st century democracy.

The real hell for homosexuals is in Iran. In remote areas of the country, LGBT people are whipped, tortured, raped and even executed with shocking regularity. Thanks to a 1987 bill that legalized sexual reassignment, parents of homosexual children regularly force them to undergo hormonal treatment against their will, and local gangsters kill people for sex reassignment surgery.

In the West, sexual equality did not come immediately either - LGBT rights were recognized relatively recently. And the attitude towards them in other countries shows that people as a race still have a long way to go to become truly human.