This song was created to raise awareness of human rights abuses against the LGBT community in Russia, and to raise money for AMERICAblog’s and Queer Nation NY’s work in this, and other, areas of international LGBT human rights.
Nellie McKay has joined Will Dollinger in releasing a new song on iTunes about anti-LGBT violence in Russia, benefiting AMERICAblog and Queer Nation NY.
Thanks to blogger John Aravosis for recognizing Queer Nation NY, and thanks to Will Dollinger and Nellie McKay for the amazing song and video that benefits John’s advocacy work on AMERICAblog and Queer Nation.
Queer Nation is grateful for John’s extraordinary work to help #LGBT Russians and we can’t thank Will and Nellie enough!
After taking over McDonald’s “Cheers To Sochi” social media campaign on Twitter last month, LGBT activists are continuing their push to demand official sponsors of the Sochi Games to denounce Russia’s anti-LGBT laws with the launch of a parody website, CheerstoSochi.org.
McDonald’s asked customers to use the #CheersToSochi hashtag on Twitter Jan. 21 to send messages of support to olympians competing in the games, and openedCheersToSochi.com (the URL now redirects to aboutmcdonalds.com) as a hub for “sending cheers.” But within days, LGBT activists and other critics swarmed the hashtag, using it to demand official Olympic sponsors, such as McDonald’s and Coca-Cola, denounce the host nation’s discriminatory policies.
Later this month, Queer Nation will be executing a zap to Coca-Cola urging them to break their silence on their sponsorship of the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi.
Our demand: That Coca-Cola denounce Russia’s anti-LGBT laws and extend its anti-discrimination policies protecting LGBT employees to all countries in which it does business —including Russia.
Details for the action — including what you can do to spread the word via social media — are forthcoming. Stay tuned!
Immediately after the Queer Nation meeting on 9/19, we will proceed to the finale of the Most Original Stoli Guy contest at:
289 10th Avenue @ West 27th Street Thursday, Sept. 19th at 8:00 PM
We will set up a picket protesting Russian vodka Stolichnaya, the sponsor of the event run by GayCities, the parent company of Queerty.com. Stolichnaya is one of the Russian products being boycotted by the LGBT community.
Please bring anti-Stoli signs to the meeting. Those who cannot attend the meeting can still protest with us at Marquee at 8:30 PM.
The Met Strikes a Homophobic Chord:
Our upcoming action at the Metropolitan Opera’s Opening Night Gala is on Monday, September 23, at 5:30 PM.
We will be planning the logistics of a picket and flyering outside the opera house to protest the appearance of two pro-Putin artists, soprano Anna Netrebko and conductor Valery Gergiev, at a performance of Eugene Onegin, an opera by gay Russian composer Peter Tchaikovsky.
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See you at the Queer Nation meeting on Thursday 9/19 at The Center!
Stolichnaya Admits It’s a Russian Company in New York Times Article
Russian Vodka Boycott Target Stolichnaya Admits It’s a Russian Company
New York, NY (September 8, 2013) — In a September 8 article in The New York Times, Val Mendeleev, the chief executive officer of SPI Group, the Russian company that owns the Stolichnaya brand, told the newspaper that “SPI Group is ‘not trying to hide’ its Russian roots — Stolichnaya’s formula, basic ingredients and name, which means capital, all come from Russia.”
“Having confirmed that Stolichnaya is a Russian vodka that is made by a Russian company, this makes the company a legitimate and ideal boycott target to create positive change for LGBT human rights inside of Russia,“ Queer Nation NY, the direct action group, and #DumpRussianVodka said in a joint statement.
Mendeleev told the Times that SPI employs at least 600 people in Russia at “a distillery in the Russian region of Tambov to produce raw alcohol for shipment to the vodka plant” in Latvia where Stolichnaya is bottled. The company grows the grain that is used to make Stolichnaya in Russia.
SPI owns two distilleries in Russia, not one, as reported by the Times. It is not clear if the 600 Russian employees include those working at the second distillery. While SPI cannot market Stolichnaya in Russia, the company sells five other vodka brands there — Kaznacheyskaya, Gradus, Vodka Great Embassy, LB Vodka, and Vodka Kaliningradskaya. On its own website, SPI says Kaznacheyskaya “is a quality brand created for the Russian market, designed to evoke a sense of national status… Kaznacheyskaya is all about pride in Russia.”
Also not mentioned in the Times story were SPI’s significant Russian real estate holdings that consist of residential buildings, office buildings, restaurants, and breweries.
While arguing that it is a supporter of the LGBT community, SPI has done nothing to combat the recently enacted Russian law that effectively bans all pro-LGBT statements and demonstrations there, or the recently proposed legislation that would remove children from Russian households headed by gay and lesbian parents. The company’s non-discrimination policies in Russia do not include sexual orientation and gender identity as protected classes.
Hundreds of bars and restaurants around the world are known to have stopped selling Russian vodka, including Stolichnaya, in response to a July 22 boycott call from Queer Nation, Dan Savage, Cleve Jones, and other leading activists.
“Stolichnaya is an iconic Russian brand made by a Russian company,” Queer Nation and #DumpRussianVodka said. “The Russian vodka boycott has successfully focused the world’s attention on the Russian government’s attacks on LGBT Russians. That boycott will continue until that vile law is repealed.”
#DumpRussianVodka is a global boycott and protest campaign to draw attention to and help stop Russian persecution of LGBT people. The aims of the campaign are to draw attention to the LGBT crisis in Russia, focus economic and political efforts on working to create change inside Russia for LGBT people, and the repeal of Russia’s anti-gay law. www.dumprussianvodka.com Twitter: @DumpStoli
Queer Nation is a direct action group dedicated to ending discrimination, violence and repression against the LGBT community. Website: www.queernationny.org. Twitter: @QueerNationNY. Facebook.com/qn.newyork.
Here is what I would like to know. Of the scores of human rights officials currently in St. Petersburg for the G20, is there at least one who has the conscience and the presence of mind to get up and and go to the airport after what happened yesterday?
And in case you are wondering, what happened yesterday is that while Putin was telling the Associated Press that no one is violating LGBT rights in Russia, his United Russia party was filing a bill that will take custody away from parents known or suspected to be homosexual.
AT THE EXACT SAME TIME. Any human rights official or civil society representative who continues to stay at G20 events after this is not only being played for a fool but is personally contributing to legitimizing this regime and its campaign to take away my children and the children of other gays and lesbians.
Quote from Russian LGBT author, activist and journalist Masha Gessenvia her Facebook page. Gessen is fleeing Russia, for her safety, and for the safety of her children.
LGBT groups hold protest against Coca-Cola for its sponsorship of Olympics in Russia
Demonstration in New York’s Times Square includes dumping Coke into street and crushing cans
Coca-Cola was poured into the street and Coke cans were crushed in Times Square today to protest the soft drink giant’s sponsorship of the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia.
Queer Nation and other LGBT groups accuse Coca-Cola of sponsoring hate because of Russia’s controversial anti-gay propaganda law that has been casting a shadow over The Games for months now.
Coca-Cola Agrees with Queer Nation and RUSA LGBT, But…
The Coca-Cola Company has issued a statement in response to the Queer Nation and RUSA LGBT#DumpCoke demonstration held in Times Square today, Wednesday, August 28. LGBT groups gathered to protest Coke’s sponsorship of the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi.
The statement by The Coca-Cola Company may be viewed by clicking here.
Queer Nation issued the following statement in response to The Coca-Cola Company:
Coca-Cola made a horrendous error when it sponsored the 1936 Olympic Games in Nazi Germany. This company knows better and it must not sponsor any Olympic Games in Russia as long as Russia’s anti-gay laws remain in force.
We also commend Coca-Cola for its Global Mutual Respect guidelines. Unfortunately, they are just that – guidelines. They are not binding. The guidelines close as follows:
“The Company reserves the right to amend this policy at any time. Nothing in this policy says or implies that a contract exists between the Company and its employees or that participation in this program is a guarantee of continued employment with The Coca-Cola Company.”
Coca-Cola’s U.S. non-discrimination policies and benefits packages are binding, and they are to be praised. That is why we demanded that Coca-Cola implement those policies worldwide.
The LGBT community has won respect on its own since the 1969 Stonewall Riots. What we demand is equality before the law in every nation around the world. Coca-Cola cannot provide that, but it can and must extend its non-discrimination policies and benefits packages to all of its employees around the world.
And so we reiterate our demands.
Coca-Cola must:
Withdraw its sponsorship of the 2014 Winter Games in Russia.
Release a statement in English and Russian that condemns workplace discrimination, harassment, and bullying directed at customers and employees based on gender identity and sexual orientation
Publish and publicize its LGBT employment policies on its Russian website in Russian and on physical bulletin boards and websites at all Coca-Cola owned and operated facilities.
Conduct periodic company-wide sensitivity trainings about its LGBT employment policies worldwide.
Institute a long-range policy to widely distribute its LGBT employment policies in human resources documentation and internal communications at all owned and operated facilities worldwide.
Require that all Coca-Cola bottlers, distributors and vendors implement LGBT employment policies as a condition of their contract with The Coca-Cola Company.
