Chronicle of pressure on LGBTQ people: Human rights news from Russia, court updates & analysis | 76 related articles

17.09.2025

15:14

A magistrates’ court in Moscow has fined the manager of the MangaLIB online library, Ivan Kvast, 200,000 rubles (approximately US$2,200) under the article on “promotion of non-traditional sexual relations” among adults (part 3 of article 6.21 of the Code of Administrative Offences). This was reported by Baza.

The case was prompted by the Japanese comic “The Girl Married to the Snake,” which was available on the platform. The court ruled that the depiction in the manga of a relationship between a human and a mythological creature fell under its definition of “non-traditional.” The judge clarified that this concept covers any sexual relationships that are not those between a man and a woman.

This is not Kvast’s first fine under similar cases. He has previously been fined 400,000 and 600,000 rubles (approximately US$4,300 and US$6,500).

The MangaLIB platform has also been fined as a legal entity: in June, the Tagansky District Court in Moscow fined the service 14 million rubles (around US$150,000) in seven cases. The basis for the fines were mangas which, according to Roskomnadzor, depicted same-sex relationships and scenes of a sexual nature. These included “Banana Fish,” “Reincarnation in the Coliseum,” and “Revolutionary Girl Utena.” After this, the website administration announced the introduction of mandatory moderation of new content, as well as an option to report content.

06.09.2025

15:28

Moscow

On 4 September, the Nagatinsky District Court of Moscow fined local resident Anna Sidorova under four charges of “LGBT propaganda” online (Part 3, Article 6.21 of the Administrative Code). This was reported by OVD-Info.

According to the court, Sidorova published “saved posts” on her VKontakte page that were “aimed at promoting LGBT and non-traditional sexual orientation.” The young woman’s page has now been deleted.

The court described that one image “showed two half-naked men engaging in sexual acts.” On another, there was “a man participating in an LGBT parade” holding a flag of the LGBTQ community.

The third and fourth images were memes. One of them showed a “little sitting person,” according to the court. The character was looking at a computer screen, reading the words: “Straight,” “Gay.” In the fourth segment of a photo divided into squares, the LGBT flag was depicted.

Another meme featured a photo of Putin and Trump lying in bed together. A dialogue took place between them:

—Do you definitely recognise <…>? (most likely referring to Crimea)

—Of course, darling!

In court, Anna Sidorova explained that she had published the “saved posts” when she was a minor. She expressed remorse, stating that she “did not fully realise her actions and their consequences,” and had not deleted the photos because she forgot about them. Sidorova also said she has now removed all “saved posts” from her page.

She was fined under all four protocols. However, the court withheld the fine amount.

05.09.2025

21:23

Moscow

Teenagers in Moscow have been charged under the article banning the promotion of non-traditional sexual relations (Article 6.21 of the Administrative Code) because of a kiss in a park, reported the Telegram channel 112, which is associated with law enforcement agencies.

The video of the kiss was previously published by informant Vladislav Pozdnyakov, who wrote that he hoped for “harsh punishment” for the young people.

Today, law enforcement officers came to the home of one of the teenagers. In the footage released from the operation, the parents are shown present during the detention. The young man’s mother burst into tears.

30.08.2025

14:38

Moscow

Moscow resident Aleksandra Manshina has been fined 200,000 roubles (approx. US$2,200) under the “LGBT propaganda” law on the internet (Part 3 of Article 6.21 of the Code of Administrative Offenses) because of two videos posted on VKontakte. OVD-Info discovered the rulings from the Babushkinsky District Court of Moscow dated 29 August (1, 2).

The reports on Manshina were compiled by staff from Centre “E.” According to them, the Moscow resident, under the pseudonym “Sasha V-Trusah-Prokhladno,” published a video on her VKontakte page with the title: “Red and Anarcho Skinheads Fight with Straight People to Total Victory” (original spelling retained).

The video, in which the line “Skinheads against prejudice, defending the city from Nazi bastards” is sung, features footage of men kissing and photos from anti-racist and anti-homophobia rallies.

In another video titled “Gay Skins Gay skinhead 88,” there are also shots of men hugging and kissing.

Aleksandra Manshina did not attend the hearings. In its rulings on the fines, the court noted that “the international public LGBT movement and its structural divisions have been recognised as extremist and their activities are prohibited in the territory of the Russian Federation.”

29.08.2025

12:19

Moscow

On 14 August, the founder of “Centre T,” Yan Dvorkin, was fined 200,000 roubles (approx. US$2,200) under the article on “LGBTQ ‘propaganda’” among minors via the internet (Part 4, Article 6.21 of the Administrative Code). The decision was published on the information portal of Moscow magistrate courts and was noted by “Ostorozhno, novosti” (“Attention, news”).

The grounds for the administrative case were a post on a Telegram channel dated 29 March, in which Dvorkin wrote about the importance of visibility for LGBTQ people’s experiences: “…I believe that we must use every opportunity that would help support LGBTQ people and the community that we may be. Any opportunity that gives more visibility to our experience. In spaces where it is safe to do so. At the very least, such visibility preserves the memory of what we are going through. About the ongoing repression, resistance practices, people’s experiences. All of this can become part of culture. Or it can disappear, as if it doesn’t matter. I think Putin’s gang would actually want this effect from their actions: for us to disappear, to be so afraid of visibility it terrifies us, for our main occupation to be hiding ourselves, our lives, our feelings and desires. And if there’s anywhere we can avoid hiding and speak out loud, I think we are obliged to do so.”

The court noted that the text was published without an “18+” age warning.

On 26 August, the activist was given another fine under a similar article; this decision has yet to be published.

26.08.2025

13:50

Zabaykalsky Krai

The owner of a club in Chita, a major city in eastern Siberia, has had their pre-trial restrictions eased in the case concerning the “international LGBT movement.”

25.08.2025

18:19

Moscow

The online platform Mangalib, which publishes Japanese comics in the genres of manga, manhwa, and manhua in Russian, has been fined 14 million rubles (about US$155,000) under seven charges of “LGBT propaganda” (part 3, article 6…). This was reported by Mediazona. The decision was issued by the Tagansky District Court in Moscow.

The cases involved seven works published on the platform’s website: “Revolutionary Girl Utena: The Movie,” “Banana Fish,” “Reincarnation in the Colosseum,” “Immaculate Sin 2,” “For Two,” “The Beast—a Partner for Kodokuri Seikatsu,” and “Fujoshi Haru-chan Loves to Drink.” For each publication, the court imposed a fine of 2 million rubles (about US$22,000).

Roskomnadzor, acting as the prosecution, claimed that the manga depicted male characters with romantic feelings for each other. According to the agency, “Revolutionary Girl Utena: The Movie” represents “a cultural threat to the national security of the Russian Federation in the part concerning protection of traditional values.” In “Reincarnation in the Colosseum,” a Roskomnadzor representative told the court there is “a harem of defeated girls, specifically involving embracing, kissing, sex, including group sex.”

The defence attempted to contest only one charge, related to the manga “Fujoshi Haru-chan Loves to Drink.” Lawyer Konstantin Popov, representing Mangalib, pointed out that the manga cover depicts not two men but a man and a woman.

Popov also insisted that the platform fulfils all requests from Roskomnadzor and strives to moderate its content.

Previously, Mangalib project manager Ivan Kvast was also fined under “LGBT propaganda” charges for 400,000 and 600,000 rubles (about US$4,500 and US$6,700).

23.08.2025

11:42

Tula Oblast

The magistrate of Judicial District No. 65 of the Proletarsky District Court in Tula has closed the case against Evgeny Malyugin, a member of the local branch of the “Rassvet” party. This was reported by the “Crime 6.21” project.

In April this year, Malyugin was fined 100,000 roubles (about US$1,100) under the law on “LGBT propaganda” (Part 3, Article 6.21 of the Code of Administrative Offences). The case was triggered by some joking photos of the young man with his friends posted on a Telegram channel.

On 10 August, the appeal court sent Malyugin’s case back for reconsideration. On 12 August, the magistrate judge issued a ruling to discontinue proceedings.

At the end of February this year, Evgeny Malyugin was detained by law enforcement officers. In addition to the charge of “LGBT propaganda,” he was also accused of “discrediting the army” (Part 1, Article 20.3.3 of the Code of Administrative Offences).

The protocol was triggered by a post on the Telegram channel “Tula Headquarters” about the August 1991 coup. Police found “discreditation” in the sentence: “That night, four women-defenders of the Tula House of Soviets picketed the headquarters of the Tula 106th Airborne Division (the very same 106th, which is now senselessly spilling blood on foreign soil).” In the view of law enforcement, this sentence meant that Malyugin had “undermined trust in the conduct of the special military operation.”

For this case, the court fined Malyugin 40,000 roubles (about US$440).

The “Rassvet” party was founded in 2024 by former presidential candidate Ekaterina Duntsova. She said that her party is against the war, supports democratic reforms, and seeks to repeal laws that violate the rights of Russian citizens, such as the “foreign agents” law. In May 2024, Duntsova herself was added to the “foreign agents” list.

22.08.2025

14:10

A protocol for “LGBT propaganda” (Part 1 Art. 6.21 of the Administrative Code) has been issued against the Kaup Centre for Historical Reenactment over photographs showing dildos and women kissing. This was reported by the outlet Mediazona.

The administrative case has been filed with Zelenogradsky District Court in Kaliningrad Region. In addition, another protocol was issued against the centre—this time for “LGBT propaganda” online (Part 3 Art. 6.21 of the Administrative Code).

The reenactment project, also called “Viking Settlement ‘Kaup,’” is located in the village of Romanovo in Zelenogradsky District, Kaliningrad Region (in western Russia near the Baltic Sea). In a conversation with Mediazona about the protocols, an administrator for the project said: “That’s not like them” and “Honestly, it’s utter nonsense.”

The press service of the Kaliningrad Ministry of Internal Affairs told the outlet that both cases were initiated because of photographs found on the “Viking Settlement’s” social media pages.

“In short, they have a room with paraphernalia…dildos and so on,” Mediazona quotes a press officer. “Not just one [dildo], as it should be [lots of dildos]… And pictures from this room were posted on [Kaup’s] social media. Regarding the last protocol, as I was told, there was specifically a photo of two women kissing, with all this paraphernalia in the background.”

The settlement also regularly hosts costume shows called “Night Kaup” that have an “18+” age restriction. Mediazona notes that in 2023, the pro-government movement “The People’s Call” complained to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Kaliningrad Region about the “Night of Spirits” show. Activists claimed the event contributed to “the spread of extremely dangerous neopaganism in these times” and promoted occultism.

16:20 Anastasia Tarasova, head of the Kaup Centre for Historical Reenactment, said that the protocol for the centre’s legal entity was drawn up over a party which the centre itself did not organise, but which was held on its premises.

“On the territory of the ‘Kaup’ settlement in 2025, an event called ‘From Dusk Till Dawn’ was held, organised by a sole proprietor who rented the venue under a contract. As part of the event, the tenant set up a ‘BDSM’ photo area, which appeared in promotional materials and on a separate ‘Night Kaup’ website. According to the tenant, this photo area was meant as a humorous entertainment feature and had nothing to do with LGBT propaganda,” she told Mediazona.

Tarasova added that the centre “will defend its legal position.”

14.08.2025

18:37

Vadim Vaganov, an LGBTQ journalist with the queer media outlet “Parni+,” has been fined 100,000 rubles (approximately US$1,100) under the “LGBT propaganda” administrative article (Art. 6.21 of the Code of Administrative Offences). Vaganov himself reported this to OVD-Info.

The protocol was drawn up over a post in Vaganov’s Telegram channel “Khrenogubka,” dedicated to the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia, and a photograph captioned “make love, not war.” Both posts were published on 17 May of this year.

As Vaganov explained on his Telegram channel, an expert commission of three people concluded that the posts contain “linguistic and psychological features of information” which they said promote queer relationships.

According to the experts, the publications persuade readers “of the attractiveness of gay relationships and form a positive image of people in gay relationships” and “are shaping a distorted idea of the social equivalence of ‘traditional’ and ‘non-traditional’ relationships.” They also claimed the posts contain “signs of a sociocultural threat to the security” of Russia.

The protocol was submitted to the justice of the peace for Court District No. 178 in Pushkinsky District, St Petersburg, on 17 July. The case was considered over two hearings.

Vadim Vaganov is an LGBTQ activist from St Petersburg, a participant in opposition and anti-war rallies, and a former candidate for municipal deputy. In November 2024, the Ministry of Justice added him to the list of “foreign agents.” In July this year, the activist reported that someone threw a stone with the inscription “foreign agent” through his window.

Story

Chronicle of pressure on LGBTQ people — Page 2

17.09.2025

06.09.2025

05.09.2025

30.08.2025

29.08.2025

26.08.2025

25.08.2025

23.08.2025

22.08.2025

14.08.2025