Gay Rights and the 2014 Sochi Olympics
As the host of the 2014 Olympics, Russia has been under the microscope in a way it likely hasn’t been before. This is not uncommon for host nations of the Games, but Russia, it seems, has taken the corruption cake, fulfilling what had been up till now a sleepy stereotype most of us had forgotten. (You can read about the billions of dollars supposedly spent on the Games that have “gone missing,” fattening the wallets of corrupt politicians, the unpaid workers, security issues, and long-term environmental destruction all adding up toward what Relevant Magazine rightly calls “The Hidden Cost of the Winter Olympics.”)
Many people have decided to abstain from watching the Olympics in reaction to this news, and while many others might dismiss such a reaction as worthless—“What good will it do? What change will it affect?”—I believe it is a reasonable reaction: the right thing is not always, or even often, the pragmatic thing to do. I also think it’s a personal choice and that there’s no One Right Way to respond; there is no singular Christian Response. (I probably will watch the Games when I can pull myself away from the mounds of doctoral work already piling up this semester.) To not respond, however; to not care, to numb ourselves… this, I think, would be wrong.
That Russia is under the microscope at all is, in fact, a good consequence of its hosting the Olympics (more than it’s a reason they shouldn’t be hosting). Hopefully, the global scrutiny will prompt change. Hopefully, this will prove true of wherever the Olympics are hosted, presently and in the Games to come.
Out of that long list of terrible wrongs in Relevant‘s article above, if only one thing changes in Russia, I hope it’s the government-sanctioned terrorism practiced against homosexuals.
I often hear the argument that Gay Rights is not a civil rights issue. In the US, the struggle for Gay Rights is often compared to the African American struggle in this country, particularly the Civil Rights Movement of the 50s and 60s. For the most part, the large majority of the black community resent this comparison, pointing out that the centuries-long horrors of slavery, Jim Crow, and government-sanctioned vigilante terrorism far outweigh the struggles of the LGBT community.
On the one hand, this argument is spot on, especially, perhaps, in this country—the scale is not the same. This reasoning, however, is often extended (by communities of all ethnic stripes) to claim that Gay Rights is not a civil liberties issue at all. And that doesn’t follow.
On the other hand, while the scale still isn’t the same—Adam Thomason’s “5 Reasons Gay Is Not the New Black” is right: nothing compares to 200 years of slavery—when I saw the following Human Rights Watch video documenting the government-sanctioned vigilante terrorism openly, proudly inflicted upon homosexual men and women in Russia, I was strongly reminded of the horrors of the Long Civil Rights Movement (that is still, while on a different scale, is being fought) here the US.
The video below reminded me of the organized vigilante groups (including but not limited to the Ku Klux Klan) who beat, sexually assaulted, bombed, and lynched innocent African American women, men, and children with little to no fear of police interference or litigated socio-moral accountability. Onlookers in the mainstream white community watched with approval, even excitement (or looked the other way and said nothing, or told black folks to “be patient”). The vast majority of the South’s white police officers sympathized with and even aided vigilante bombings and lynchings, and when a Klansmen, for example, was indicted, he had little to fear from the courtroom: all-white, all-male juries deliberated over murder trials for a matter of mere minutes before returning verdicts of “Not guilty.”
The similarities don’t end there, and I could write a much longer article analyzing them. But for now, I challenge you to watch the video below and tell me Gay Rights isn’t about civil rights.
This kind of violent LGBT oppression is not unique to Russia. (If you can stomach it, this video documents the extreme police brutality exhibited against gay men in Kyrgyzstan.) It isn’t unique to Eastern Europe either, but that part of the world, and especially Russia is, as I’ve said, under the microscope thanks to the Olympic Games.
I fervently pray the awareness will instigate change. Even in this country where homosexuals are still violently bullied, though thankfully without government approval; and where, speaking of government approval, several states, including my state, Texas, do not offer legal protection to someone who has been fired from his or her job because of his or her sexual orientation.
Gay is not “the new black,” as catchy (and offensive) as that phrase is, but homosexuals all over the world endure very real and serious infringements upon their civil liberties, often while facing (in stark contrast to the African American community) additional ostracization from their churches and families—and that’s something Christians cannot afford to respond to with the “appalling silence of the good.”
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About The Author
Renea McKenzie
(Editor in Chief) is a poet whose work often centers around the relationships between nature and the city, loss and love, faith and protest. She holds an MLA in English Literature and an MA in African American Studies. In between her two Masters degrees, Renea took a "gap year" to study theology at the famous L'Abri Fellowship in Switzerland. L'Abri is also where she read the Harry Potter saga for the first time and fell in love with the characters and the story's triumph of sacrificial love. Renea leads an incredibly talented creative writing group at her church and spends a fair amount of time binging books and Netflix and swing dancing at the historic Sons of Hermann Hall.
Not sure what youre trying to say, exactly. As a Christian who came out of that lifestyle and gave up a life of sin to follow Jesus, I am in touch with the truth that the life is sinful but also that the power of God is able to transform lives. To equate a people group who are broken and in sin to a race is offensive to me and to God, Im sure. Its not a sin to be black, and homosexuals are not a race. However, you bring up a good point as to whether or not its a civil rights issue. I think it may be on some level. People say its not a civil rights issue because homosexuality is a sin and not an ethnic group. I agree with that. But then, if a country was burning adulterers or abusing and beating drug addicts or alcoholics, THAT would be a civil rights violation too, because in the end, people have the freedom to choose how they want to live their life and people have a right to live in peace, whether or not they are in sin. At least, this seems to be the Western understanding of our rights under a democracy. I chose to follow Jesus, whether he transformed me or not, but I was willing to give up sex and romance for the God of Israel, if it was His will. I got way more than I could have ever hoped for and more transformation than I could have imagined. But it was the love of God which led me to repentence, a love that even protects sinners from the punishments they deserve. And no group should be treated in those ways, though they be sin. Definitely thought provoking.
I am trying not to get offended by all the gay rights press at the Olympics. Has anyone seen the Centre for Inclusion and Diversity commercial for the olympics? it is in very bad taste I feel. If this issue of discrimination/violence against/imprisonment for homosexuals is to be taken seriously they should be appropriate in their promotion. i feel compassion towards homosexuals being persecuted violently and insulted but i still will call it a sin and be persecuted for that. what about my rights as a Christian? What do i do with these conflicting emotions? How does Jesus want us to react? We can stay silent..can we?
Thanks for your comment. You bring up an interesting tension. Just as there is no protection in many states from being fired for one’s sexual orientation, there is little legal protection from being fired for expressing “intolerant” viewpoints off the clock, no matter how civil and respectful. And yet, when we look at the Scriptures and the life of Jesus, we see a constant call to give up our own rights and in stark contrast, fight for the rights of the oppressed. We are to endure personal persecution in Christ-like submission and suffer the persecution and oppression of no one (Isaiah 1:17; Psalm 82:3; Matthew 5: 10-12, 38-48; James 1:27).
The main concern of this post is with the violent violation of the most basic of human rights. On this issue especially, no, we cannot be silent. As the great German theologian Friedrich Bonhoeffer puts it, “Silence in the face of evil is itself evil: God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.”
To reneamac: hello. as eloquent as you write, I am not at all sure what you are saying. what is the violent violation.
Dear Anon, did you watch the video(s)? When homosexual men and women are beaten and raped, women and men, raped and beaten and tortured while the community looks on and the police and government look the other way, this is a violation of basic human dignity, God-given human dignity. And we must speak out; we must act.
It is definitely a human rights issue. It is in no way and never can be a civil rights issue. The first commenter said it best, a choice to sin whether homosexually, or lying or adultery–those will never equip to race, something that you do not have a choice about.
Everyone has the freedom to not be harmed or attacked by people or the government, but society is not obligated to endorse and make immoral choices easier for you.
That’s a helpful distinction, Sam; I had been conflating the two in this piece, so thanks for making that point. But even distinguishing between civil rights and human rights, and even working under the wrong assumption that same-sex attraction is always a choice (conflating same-sex attraction with sex under the one term homosexuality is highly problematic), even so, do you really see absolutely no civil rights concerns? How are you defining civil rights and human rights? I still see civil rights issues, but perhaps I understand the term differently.
Human rights are those believed to belong justifiably to every person. Like the right not to be lured by men pretending to be gay into fake dates that turn into torture sessions. Whereas civil rights are the the rights of citizens to political and social freedom and equality. Like being able to go to the police after you’ve been raped and beaten and expect them to pursue justice. There’s lots of room for overlap between these two definitions, of course. So it might be even more helpful to associate the term civil with the concept of government, which seems to be the distinction you’re making in your comment. So when the government fails and even actively avoids protecting human rights, it’s a civil rights issue as well.
It will always be wrong for the government to allow any person to be bullied. It doesn’t matter what makes them different, the government cannot decide that some humans can have protection and others can’t. I know that if I were to find myself unable to have what others have I would cry foul.
I was the first @anonymous poster on this blog post – I just want to give a quick shout out to the whole “choice” thing. I want to make clear, as someone who was in that life hard-core and now as someone who is a servant of Christ, that I did not choose to be gay, any more than I chose to be a sinner when I was brought into this dark and broken world. No, I don’t believe it’s a genetic thing, but I do believe a lot of the outfall of abuse and neglect begins to affect us before the age of 3, and the longings that drive such sins are deeply ingrained, so much so that we might as well have been born that way. I also did not “choose” to stop being gay, just as I could not have chosen to stop being a sinner. What I DID choose is to turn to Jesus Christ, change my mind about how I was living, and be willing to follow Jesus at all costs as Lord and God. This meant that even if people like me “can’t change” I would give up a fundamental human experience: romance. But for me, after my encounters with Jesus, it was worth it. If Christians and unbelievers could understand this, we would all be able to communicate better – coming to Jesus is not about becoming “straight.” It’s about willingly submitting yourself to the law and love of God in Christ, no matter the cost. If transformation happens on the way (and it has for many, though not for all), then that’s even better. Christians need to stop telling gay people to “just stop sinning” like it’s some kind of thing you occasionally dabble in. They must tell them that, in fact, there is only one escape from the sins that enslave them, Jesus Christ and His Spirit. Then, whether or not they were “born that way” won’t matter: they’ll be born again and ushered into a Kingdom where all our longings are fulfilled and even marriage will have passed away. I know this post isn’t really about this per se, but I thought it was a good opportunity to augment my first comment with some more thoughts on it, since it came up.
Thank you, Anon #1, for sharing your story and God’s story in your life, and for taking the time to reiterate the truth about choice with nuance and grace.
It’s definitely pertinent to the main point of the conversation because “You can’t choose to be black” (suggesting people choose which sexual desires manifest at puberty) is often a part of the Gay Rights Aren’t Civil Rights argument. (Interestingly, several lighter-skinned blacks chose to “pass” as whites in order to escape racism, living in near constant fear of being outed…)
But as you rightly point out, a person’s sexual orientation is not usually a choice; what we do with our sexual desires, regardless of orientation, is. As an unmarried, 30-something heterosexual woman, I too have desires I choose not to act on because I choose to follow Christ. The scale of the pain and loneliness often is not the same as that of my homosexual brothers and sisters, but it’s still a choice that society–Christians too–largely doesn’t understand.
“Christians need to stop telling gay people to ‘just stop sinning’ like it’s some kind of thing you occasionally dabble in.” Absolutely right. I’m sorry for the ignorant, even if well-meaning, nonsense you’ve no doubt had to endure from other Christians. Keep telling your story. Keep shining the light of Christ in dark places. Especially the Church.