6-12-06, 9:05 am
Pravda described some of the attackers as 'young communists and patriots.' Among these 'patriots' were about 1,000 of Moscow's police along with hundreds of members of fascist gangs and religious extremist groups who had mobilized to stop the parade from taking place, according to a report by a parade participant which appeared in the UK Gay News as well as eyewitness accounts reported by major media outlets such as Reuters, CNN, and the BBC.
Moscow's mayor had banned the march, and many religious leaders called for violence against the marchers, reports journalist Doug Ireland on his blog. Parade organizers accused the mayor of Moscow and these religious leaders of fostering an atmosphere of violence and hate prior to the parade, encouraging fascist gangs to confront the parade marchers. Media reports say that ultra right religious organizations, anti-immigrant groups and skinheads intimidated marchers and assaulted them. Some reports indicate that fascist gangs may have worked closely with the police to attack the marchers, throwing tear gas canisters and attacking marchers with truncheons and other weapons.
French communists participated in the gay pride parade by invitation of its Moscow organizers. After the attacks, French communists condemned the actions of the attackers and accused the CPRF of siding with them. One French communist who participated in the march told Pravda, 'Their contacts with fascist-oriented organizations discredit the party in the eyes of all European communists. It is a grand shame.' PCF political bureau member Richard Sanchez reportedly characterized the CPRF as homophobic. 'Being a communist and a homophobe at the same time is so typical of the Communist Party of Russia,' Pravda quotes him as saying. Sanchez stated that it is impossible to be a Marxist-Leninist and uphold the ideals of the international communist movement and to be homophobic at the same time.
CPRF head Gannady Zyuganov and other leaders of that party sided with religious extremists, local politicians and others by condemning plans for the march. Zyuganov described the parade as 'unhealthy.' Other members of the CPRF leadership lashed out at the gay pride parade organizers and the French party. Alexander Yushchenko, Zyuganov's press secretary told Pravda that '[t]he French communists can support whoever they want there in France: either homosexuals or onanists.'
Zyuganov’s deputy, Ivan Melnikov, verbally attacked the gay pride parade organizers in an interview with Pravda and accused them of being 'interested in their own promotion.' He justified and explained away the attacks opportunistically by saying, 'Moscow is not Berlin or Paris. Any displays of unconventional sexual orientation look revolting in Russia.'
Neither Zyuganov nor his representatives condemned the violence or the apparent cooperation his party had with fascist gangs and religious extremists during the attack or on the issue of sexual orientation generally. Pravda reports that aside from these abusive comments toward gay and lesbian people and the French Communist Party, CPRF leaders have not taken the criticisms seriously.
--Joel Wendland is managing editor of Political Affairs and can be reached at
