Attack on gay pride participants on the Champ de Mars in St. Petersburg

On June 29, 2013 in St. Petersburg, on the Field of Mars, there was an attack on the participants of a sanctioned LGBT rally.

Gay Pride participants (LGBT activists, representatives of the Alliance of heterosexuals for LGBT rights, etc.) arrived by bus at the appointed time, stood on the fenced territory Champ de Mars, banners and rainbow flags unfurled, surrounded by police. Opponents of the event have already gathered at the venue behind the fence: Cossacks with whips, shaven-headed young people in black T-shirts, "people in priestly vestments." Gathered homophobes shouted threats of physical violence against LGBT people, threw raw eggs and smoke checkers. One of the burning checkers hit the rainbow flag.

The police did not interfere in what was happening. Approximately 20 minutes later after the start of the rally, one of the organizers, Yuri Gavrikov, was approached by a police colonel and " demanded to immediately stop the rally, because there was a complaint that children were walking nearby, on which the propaganda of homosexuality and pedophilia allegedly works badly ." After the protesters refused to leave the square, the riot police rushed at the participants gay pride and began detentions. More than fifty participants of the rally were pushed into a paddy wagon.

In during the police action, opponents of the action threw eggs, stones and bottles at the bus with LGBT activists. Several people were detained.

The same gay pride participants who managed to escape from the police cordon, a crowd of homophobes began to beat them. Those who fell were kicked on the head, smashing his face into blood and knocking out his teeth.

One of the policemen received chemical burns to his eyes.

detainees LGBT activists were taken to several departments. Later part the detainees were released, having drawn up a protocol under administrative articles on violation of the rules for holding public actions and disobedience to the police.

Sources

• Raging crowd and riot police attacked gays on the Field of Mars // Piter.tv. 2013. June 29.
• Buzaeva E., Zhukhevych A. Gay people were publicly lynched on the Field of Mars // Piter.tv. 2013. June 29.