Gay Olympians need our support to challenge Russia's homophobia
|
Version 0 of 1. Right before retiring from swimming, aged 19, I was "asked" by officials at the 1999 US nationals, as one of the few, if not the only, out swimmer at the time, to change in the disabled bathroom. I agreed to this insulting and preposterous request, not having any allies on my team, or on my coaching staff, to stick up for me. I finally drew the line and retired when all of my team-mates got up from the table where I had just sat down to join them for lunch. I was lonely and tired, and this relentless ostracism, while not uncommon to young gay people, is, and was, completely unnecessary. That was 15 years ago. Things are different now, and they should be. Here we are, though, heading into another Olympic year, and this time to Russia. In less than a month, the world's eyes will be on Sochi for the Winter Olympics as we begin celebrating the excellence of our athletes. My hope is that those in their ranks who are gay are made to feel safe and celebrated, and that every one of their allies takes this opportunity to stand by their fellow competitors. As things are now, gay Russian athletes won't be able to come out. They won't be able to celebrate publicly with their loved ones, they won't be able to cry their failures on the shoulders of their girlfriends or boyfriends, unless they are willing to do so at great risk of getting fined and/or jailed (at the very least) once the world is no longer looking. This seems counter to the principles of celebration and unity that the Olympics stand for. Not long ago, South Africa was held responsible for its government's reprehensible apartheid policies by being excluded from most international competitions. Given the lengths a city goes to in preparation for hosting the Olympics, I understand the reluctance to boycott (and as a former Olympian, question the effectiveness of such a choice). However, we should have a visible stance in relation to policies like the one Russia has now. To quote one of my favourite Russian thinkers, Mikhail Bakunin: "I am truly free only when all men and women are free. The freedom of others, far from negating or limiting my own, is, on the contrary, its necessary premise and confirmation." My hope is that those who are at the Games take these words and let them echo, with grace, courage and dignity, in whatever way they choose to, because it will make a difference to those participating, and to those watching. Indeed, the IOC has published outlines on how to protest while remaining within its rules of engagement. Finally, in an effort to fully illustrate what I'm talking about, I want to share this: after writing my last article on Comment is free reframing the discussion of gender within the larger cultural landscape of the celebration of difference, and citing Russia's institutional anti-gay legislation as an instance of failure to do this, a close Russian friend of mine stopped talking to me. It was also suggested to me, as recently as yesterday, that I shouldn't get too "anti-Russian" in my rhetoric, because it would be unfortunate if something "bad were to happen" to me" during fashion week in Paris. Finally, I presume the images from one of my most recent international ad campaigns, featuring a link to my art work, are still nowhere to be found in Russia and the content of one of my pieces in particular is probably why. My point: not only can we all do so much better than this, but also that none of this is actually OK. <em>• On 7 February, the day of the Sochi Winter Olympics opening ceremonies, Casey Legler will team up with fellow queer artists, PrintAllOverMe and the NYC gallery Louis B James, in designing prints and images for tracksuits. All the profits from the sales will go to the </em><em>Russian LGBT Network</em><em>. </em> Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. |