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Loading ...Russian gays express disappointment in Clinton
10.14.2009 1:30pm EDT
(Moscow) Russia’s leading gay activist said Wednesday that he was disappointed that Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton met with an outspoken foe of gay rights during her two-day trip to Russia and did not decry homophobia in the country.
Clinton attended a ceremony unveiling a statue of Walt Whitman at Moscow State University with Russian officials including Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov. Luzhkov has blocked all attempts to hold gay pride marches in Moscow, once saying they “can be described in no other way than as satanic.”Clinton did not mention of the issue during the ceremony. Some biographers have described Whitman as homosexual and U.S. gay activists have claimed him as symbol of their movement.
“Just as Pushkin and Whitman reset poetry we are resetting our relations for the 21st century,” Clinton said. A statue of the Russian poet Alexander Pushkin was erected at George Washington University, in Washington, D.C., in 2000.
It was not clear whether Luzhkov was aware of Whitman’s status as a gay icon, and sponsors of the statue said they were honoring Whitman strictly for his contributions to literature.
“Whitman transcended his sexuality in his art and I would like to thank Mayor Luzhkov for welcoming him in his city and have absolutely nothing to say about those things,” said James W. Symington, a former four-time congressman for Missouri and representative of the American-Russian Cultural Cooperation Foundation.
Gay activist Nikolai Alexeyev said Wednesday he was disappointed Clinton did not discuss discrimination against gays.
“Russia is supposed to be a democracy and she said nothing,” he said.
Alexeyev had called on Clinton to denounce what he called entrenched and degrading homophobic attitudes in Russia at a news conference Tuesday.
A U.S. State Department spokesman said the department was unaware of any request from the Russian gay community.
Homosexuality was only decriminalized in Russia in 1993 and homophobic attitudes remain widespread.
Activists have taken the struggle to hold a gay pride parade in Moscow to the European Court of Justice, which is scheduled to rule on the issue in early 2010.
The statue of Walt Whitman was placed in the gardens of Moscow State University, where in May more than 30 gay activists were arrested for attempting to hold a pride march.
The statue of Walt Whitman will complement a statue of the Russian poet Alexander Pushkin installed in Washington in 2000.
Whitman sculptor Alexander Bourganov remarked at a press conference Tuesday that the opening had been delayed and been politically difficult. He did not elaborate.
>Whitman transcended his sexuality
You’re not wrong. This is deeply offensive. Especially since his sexuality deeply informed his art, and parts of Leaves of Grass had been censored because of it.
I agree with people who say that it is too simplistic to say that Whitman was “gay” (because of our culture not being developed yet in history and because the word/concept “gay” was not being used then). However, one is naive or malicious to ignore the same-sex love that permeates both his personal biography and his poems.
@churroboy: indeed – Whitman’s homosexuality was the raison d’etre of his srt.
@Debra: are you 15? your myopia is offensive.
I don’t really know exactly what this unveiling was all about but I think it’s silly to expect her to decry homophobia on a visit. She’s not our LGBT leader…that’s not her job.
As stated, we aren’t even a country to speak seeing as we’re behind The Netherlands, Belgium, Canada, Spain, Norway, and Sweden on LGBT issues…
Be slow to anger slow to speak and quick to listen. Perhaps she will read this article and respond in the manner the gentleman from Russia wants. Stop yur whining already!
Hopefully the Moscow LGBT community will embrace this statue in a public way.
Shame on Hillary for not saying anything. One thing Obama is known for is being always willing to speak truth in the company of people who disagree. As she represents him, she should adopt a similar approach.
I agree! LOL. I have said plenty about OBlahblah too, believe me.
Yes Bill, I mean Brian…direct that self-righteous anger of yours to the one in charge with a majority in both Houses. He’s the Commander in Chief of our military, and has the full weight of Congress behind him. What is the deal with this man? Give either Clinton the WH with this kind of political capital in their coffers, a majority Congress, and we would all be getting married today. At least Bill tried, but BO is all talk and no balls. I wish he would prove me wrong, please!
Yes, Clinton compromised by signing DADT and DOMA – there were many factors surrounding those compromises which did not happen in a vacuum. Holding on to disappointments from 15 years ago will NOT move us forward! If you really feel the need to direct your anger, then how about asking BO why he has not signed an executive order to abolish DADT? He has the backing of former Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the majority opinion of the country at large – what’s holding things up?
For the record, the following quote is attributed to James W. Symington NOT to Hillary Clinton! – “Whitman transcended his sexuality in his art and I would like to thank Mayor Luzhkov for welcoming him in his city and have absolutely nothing to say about those things,”
The Clintons did the best they could? Signing DADT and DOMA was the best Bill Clinton could do? Disgracing gay vets and banning gay marriage was his fucking best! Outrageous statement.
And where is Hillary wonderful on gay rights now? She won’t put herself out there. How many times has this conversation been heard in the Clinton home:
Bill: Hillary, I feel really bad about screwing over the gays during my presidency, and would like you to make a few calls to some of your old colleagues in the Senate to repeal DADT and DOMA. It is really the least we can do.
Hillary: Will do Bill. I already have calls in to get this done.
I’ll tell you how many conversations they have had about gays – ZERO.
Really guys? The arguments here seem as old as those going on at the Advocate site. The 90’s are so 90’s and in the past, and this Clinton is now in a different position, one that doesn’t have any effect on the changing of laws. She was in a diplomatic role for our country while in Russia, and was a guest of that country. The fact that their homophobic mayor felt compelled to attend this ceremony because of her presence was a small victory in itself.
I’m just really disapointed with all the gay hate towards the Clintons. I was tuned in during the 90’s and saw the true hatred of our own country against us as it is in Russia today. They wanted all out bans on our very existence. It was clever thinking that got us DOMA, which will be much simpler to overturn than an amendment to our US Constitution banning gay everything. It seems to me they did the best they could do in those extreme circumstances, and gave us some of the best economic times of the past century. And, I would put money on it, if she were President today, DADT would be done and done as promised by her. She has the balls our current leader seems to have misplaced….not his, mind you, but a brass set of her own.
From the family that brought you DADT and DOMA.
churroboy that jumped out at me too and yes it was a way to say “even though he was gay……”.
Sorry Debra I don’t agree…this admin has no backbone, that is why she said nothing. That is why we don’t have a deadline for DADT and DOMA. That is why we have those horrible Justice briefs.
WIMPS.
I just sent Mrs. Clinton an email instructing her, as my employee, to stand up for what is right. This admin is all smoke and mirrors in my opinion. No balls.
Churroboy….perhaps she meant he transcended his sexuality in that he wasn’t defined by it. None of us should have to be defined by which gender we love. And, on the point of some being disappointed in Hillary’s lack of comments regarding Russia’s homophobic attitudes, it seems it would be hypocritical of a representaive of the US to criticize anyone for that. The fact that there is a statue of an openly gay man in the place where the Russian GLBT were denied the right to gather is speaking volumes more than any words from anyone.
“Whitman transcended his sexuality in his art” As if his sexuality is something that is inferior and he needs to rise above it? Am I wrong, or is this offensive?