Tweet
Dan is live-tweeting his arrest in Moscow for demonstrating against the government’s cancellation of Pride. There is liveblogging on the Moscow Pride arrests/situation at: http://goo.gl/5KTu2
Army Lieutenant Dan Choi, outspoken Don’t Ask Don’t Tell activist, is in Russia this week in solidarity with LGBT activists there, who are defying the recent ban on Moscow pride, scheduled for this Saturday May 28. While activists plan to march in defiance of the ban, the Moscow police have vowed to break up the parade, and religious and Neo-Nazi extremist groups have announced they’ll be out in force as well. Dan Choi filmed a short video from in front of the Kremlin, announcing his intention to march with Russian activists, and risk arrest while doing it. Here is that video:
Some of the Tweets:
From Russian Police PaddyWagon:LGBT Activists (led by Russian Transgender citizen (male pronoun) Anna Komarova) arrested after attacks by Neo-Nazis
Headed to unknown Moscow Station
Right ear ringing small bleeding, 8 in the car including me and Andy Thayer.
Dan Choi
Street Address: Litvina Sidogo 3A.
8 minutes agoDan Choi
We are here: (gray dot) Right ear ringing small bleeding, 7 in the car including me and Andy Thayer. yfrog.com/h7llghwj
11 minutes agoDan Choi
We are entering Presnensky Police Station 1905, Moscow. yfrog.com/h0vxqiijj
22 minutes agoDan Choi
Our group was led by Transgender Russian Citizen (male pronoun) Anna Komarova, 29 yrs old. yfrog.com/h84svetej yfrog.com/hs5lupsj
26 minutes agoDan Choi
Russian Arrestees: Tim Magomedor (25yo), Alexy Kiselev 27, Elizaveta Nikitina 23, Alexander Shiriaev 24, Andzey Zayziev 25.
30 minutes agoDan Choi
Right ear ringing, small bleeding, 8 in the Moscow Police squad car including Louis Georges-Tin, Andy Thayer and me. “Glasnost!”
34 minutes ago
As of 8AM ET, there still has been no response by the U.S. Embassy or from the U.S. Srate Department. U.S. State Dept. Web site: http://goo.gl/pswqQ, Switchboard: 202-647-4000. Dan’s request: “need calls to Hillary Clinton: condemn violation of Russian and Universal rights of expression.”
UPDATE: Video of arrests:
3 Comments
Update on arrests / violence @ Moscow Pride 2011By our count, 18 pro-lgbt demonstrators were arrested today (15 Russians and 3 internationals), as were an unknown number of fascists who tried to attack us. A fascist tried to slug me in the face, but missed. One of our Russian friends was injured and taken to the hospital, but not in serious condition. We were very worried that the police would simply allow the fascists to beat us to a pulp. That this did not happen is a victory, of sorts.
The pro-gay European Court of Human Rights decision is now revealed as a piece of toilet paper, soiled. The European Court and the Russian gov’t look very bad, and President Obama and Sec’t of State Clinton look like hypocrites for failing to say anything about the events today. Before the demo, our Russian friends were told by the U.S. embassy that they would simply “monitor the situation.” Lot of help that was.
Russian LGBTs unfortunately still have a lot of work ahead of them. The Russian gov’t continues to thumb its nose at world opinion, as does the U.S. gov’t in this and many other matters.
Andy Thayer
Gay Liberation Network
PS Shortly before the demo today I received a report from Dallas that it the telephone of the Russian embassy in Washington was constantly busy. My friend then called the Houston consulate and got through to someone who had apparently received several previous calls and was pretty nasty with him. The U.S. gov’t may not give a shit, but at least many people in the U.S. do.
Video from today’s Moscow Pridehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v…
releasedAccording to this live blog, they’ve now been released.