My whole life I’ve watched folks on the margins suffer greater degrees of basically everything that’s bad.  So it’s no surprise that the war in Ukraine disproportionately impacts the well-being of LGBTQ Ukrainians.

This past weekend, LGBTQ activists were in Washington DC to raise awareness for the plight of queer people in Ukraine. Events included a $50k fundraiser and a White House rally to highlight what Russia’s invasion means for LGBTQs in Eastern Europe.

Russia Hates Gays. 

In a speech ostensibly declaring war on Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin justified his aggression as a bulwark against the erosion of “traditional values” in the US and Western Europe.

“They sought to destroy our traditional values and force on us their false values that would erode us, our people from within, the attitudes they have been aggressively imposing on their countries, attitudes that are directly leading to degradation and degeneration, because they are contrary to human nature. This is not going to happen. No one has ever succeeded in doing this, nor will they succeed now.”

If you hear echos of Tucker Carlson and Fox News, you’re not alone. The Russian law banning portrayals of LGBTQs in the media and in schools makes Putin the godfather of similar “don’t say gay” laws in red states like Texas, Florida, and elsewhere.

I’m a Cold War kid who was raised to distrust Russia. I believed my president when he called the Soviet Union an “evil empire” and I’m pretty sure the modern GOP’s fealty to Putin has Ronald Reagan spinning in his grave.

Bogdan Globa organized Sunday’s White House rally.

“Standing up to the Soviet Union once defined the Republican Party and now they’re perfectly comfortable kissing Putin’s ass.” Mr. Globa told the crowd. “Can someone please help me understand what happened to the Republican Party?”

Kharkiv

Kharkiv is Ukraine’s second city with a pre-war population of 1.4m residents. Previously Kharkiv was home to Ukraine’s 2nd largest LGBTQ population and a beacon for Russian queers eager to escape the long arm of Putin’s anti-gay mean streak.

Thanks to close (26m) proximity to the Russian border and a large Russian-speaking population, Kharkiv appeared ripe for the taking and when Putin discovered otherwise, the Russian military bombed large swathes to matchsticks.

Much of Kharkiv now lies in ruins, countless residents displaced, and a once promising LGBTQ scene, an oasis in a hostile region, has completely vanished. It might get worse before the tide turns. And then we’ll discover how the world grapples with the wholesale displacement and destruction of an entire metropolis, LGBTQ population included.

These are the questions DC gays grappled with over the weekend.

Immigration Laws

A common refrain from the White House rally was for President Joe Biden to welcome LGBTQ Ukrainians into the the US with Temporary Protected Status. That eliminates visa barriers for queer Ukrainians fleeing their war-ravaged homeland. TPS also send a message that gay Ukrainians are welcome in America until it’s safe to go back to rebuild their homeland.

American immigration policy reflects our values. And if Joe Biden means what he says about equality, that means welcoming LGBTQs displaced by war in Latin American and the Middle East, as well.

All LGBTQs displaced by war should be welcome in American and surely not just the white ones.

HIV Meds

It’s painful to contemplate the fate of my HIV+ Ukrainian brothers and sisters battling the AIDS virus in the midst of Putin’s pitiless carnage.

After 30 years living with HIV, my good health is thanks to HIV meds that suppress the virus and keep my immune system humming along. Without these meds I’d be become contagious, get sick, and eventually die covered in lesions, just like the old days.

Since the Russian invasion of their country, HIV+ Ukrainians are now hard-pressed to comply with the very basics like lab work and trips to the pharmacy. With their healthcare system badly beleaguered by Russian bombs and missiles, HIV+ Ukrainians are suddenly in an uphill battle for their lives.

Brittney Griner 

Two-time Olympic champion Brittney Griner might be the greatest female basketball players in history. Her sterling resume includes an NCAA title + MVP honors, a WNBA title, and 7 trips to the All-Star game. Ms. Griner remains the only woman in college hoops history to score 2,000 points and block 500 shots.

Ms. Griner is also a three-time champ in Russia’s professional women’s league. Unlike their highly-paid NBA counterparts, even top WNBA stars supplement their paltry salaries by playing abroad.

On a recent trip back to Russia for league play, Ms. Griner was arrested at the airport, allegedly with cannabis vape cartridges in tow. She’s been detained in Russia since early March.

Whether she was set up by the Russians or if Ms. Griner chose to travel with cannabis, we may never know. But we do know that Ms. Griner is now basically a high profile hostage whose fate is complicated by the war in Ukraine.

“If we want her out of jail, Russia is going to have some terms,” said Evelyn Farkas, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Russia & Ukraine. “It could be a prisoner swap. They also could use it as an implicit threat or blackmail to get us to do something or not do something. Either way, they find it useful.”

As long as Putin’s bargaining chips include high-profile gay athletes, the war in Ukraine remains an LGBTQ issue.

About that sign

ACTUP’s Silence = Death poster is the the most iconic protest sign in all our lifetimes. The simplicity of the text, two words & an equal sign, make SILENCE = DEATH a surprisingly versatile message for just about any protest, from gun safety to cannabis reform.

The Russian version, мовчання = смерть, seemed like a good fit for the White House rally, in Vlad Putin’s native tongue should images from the rally find their way back to Moscow.

That’s unlikely but my sign did get someone’s attention.

Shortly before the rally began a tall, lanky dude wearing a brand of sneakers I didn’t recognize approached me in the park opposite the White House and demanded (!) to know what the sign was for.

“I’m here sticking up for queer Ukrainians,” I replied, kinda stunned at a random stranger’s agro.

He then goes on some rant about how Ukraine is filled with neo-nazis and thank god for Putin’s courage and if I really cared about gay people I’d work harder to overthrow the American government. My unprintable, expletive-filled retort was clever enough but having the last word didn’t neutralize the nasty vibe this dude laid down.

So I took a moment to compose myself and to reflect on what it means to brandish a deliberately provocative protest sign.

“He parroted Kremlin talking points,” I told my partner later. “What if he was part of Putin’s disinformation ecosystem? Do you think he might be a Russian spy? ”

His laugh made it clear he did not.

“Honey, sometimes a weirdo in the park is just a weirdo in the park,” he replied, settling the matter.

Jay Lassiter is a NJ political gadfly whose radical agenda includes free weed and ending capital punishment. When he’s not on Twitter, Jay’s working to keep the government out of your womb + your bedroom + your library + especially your bong.