East Ukraine has Become very Dangerous for the LGBT Community
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Today we take a look at 1,600-word expose appearing in the November 30 edition of the Guardian newspaper.
The article first appeared in the Russian-language ezine Takie Dela in July, before being translated into English and appearing on November 20 in the Calvert Journal, titled "Wild orchid: Meet Mikhail Koptev, the queen of wartorn Luhansk."
"Even drinking on the street in Luhansk is dangerous. At any moment a military patrol could walk past and demand to see your documents ... Offering blow-jobs to the brusque men of Luhansk, some of whom are dressed in army fatigues, isn't the safest thing to do either".
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The article's author Denis Boyarinov, says that the self-taught fashion designer really is the star of Luhansk. They know him in Brazil. He was a star long before the arrival of its other celebrities, the field commanders and the head of the Luhansk People's Republic, Igor Plotnitsky.
"Koptev has halted his tolerance-testing performances, no longer arranging shows and gay parties. As soon as the Luhansk People's Republic came into being, it became obvious that those in control were set to persecute the LGBT community. First there were rumours that homosexuals would be shot on sight".
According to the expose, a new kind of hero has emerged in wartorn Ukraine: the rebel fighter. Publication of the expose on Koptev coincides with an op-ed written by Maxim Eristavi, a co-founder of the Hromadske International news network based in Kyiv.
In that article, appearing on November 27 in the US-based Politico ezine, Eristavi says that he still sees a ray of hope for Ukraine's LGBT community. Let's hope so. This has been Peter Byrne with the press review.
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