Anti-Gay Laws In Russia Slammed By Obama
Anti-gay laws will not be tolerated in any country, says President Obama. In an interview with Jay Leno, host of the “Tonight Show,” Obama responded to a question about new laws in Russia. Russia has recently been at the center of major controversy after passing laws banning “homosexual propaganda.”
During the interview, Leno said Russia’s new laws were like Nazi-era Germany, Politico reports. President Obama was clear in his response, saying that intimidation and harm directed at gay people is not acceptable. But he was quick to point out that Russia is not alone with these types of laws.
During a recent tour in Africa, Obama talked about several countries’ treatment of their homosexual citizens. He said that gay people should be given equal rights. This was not taken well in Africa, but it did earn the president points within the LGBT community back home.
Leno asked Obama if he thought Russia’s new anti-gay laws would be a problem during next year’s Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. The president believes that Russia will not want to disrupt the world’s largest sporting event to enforce these laws. Instead, Obama believes gay athletes should and will be judged on their performance as competitors, not their sexual orientations.
President Obama went on to tell the host of the “Tonight Show” that he believes strongly in universal rights, CNN reports. Any type of discrimination based on a group’s sexual orientation, race, religion, or gender goes against universal rights. This should be a “basic morality” that every country should have, he says.
US relations with Russia have been frosty in recent times. Much of this comes from strong disagreement over how to handle the crisis in Syria over the last two years. Recently, Russia has allowed ex-NSA contractor Edward Snowden to be given asylum.
This is the first time President Obama has commented on Russia’s controversial new laws. Russia’s leadership has been seen to be shifting toward social conservatism in recent times, leading to new anti-gay laws earlier this year.
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