In the last couple of years Michael Lucas has moved himself from just being a producer of gay porn to becoming much more political, mainly defending Israel against it detractors. That includes making a documentary about gay life in Tel Aviv.
Now he’s planning another documentary, this one focussing on the situation for LGBT people in Russia, particularly now that recent changes in the law have made things increasingly difficult for gay people. Now he’s hoping to find funding for it on Kickstarter. It’s another subject that’s close to home for Lucas (his Jewish heritage has helped make him a fierce defender of Israel), as he grew up in Russian.
As Lucas says on the Kickstarter page, ‘I am currently finishing a feature length documentary “Campaign of Hate: Russia and Gay Propaganda” about gay life in modern Russia. Since growing up as a confused gay child in the former Soviet Union, it has been my dream to show the world a vision of what it is like to be a member of the LGBT community in my former homeland.
As most of the world moves forward toward gay equality, Russia is seemingly heading backward. Antigay sentiment and legislation are spreading rapidly throughout the country. Earlier this year, the Russian parliament passed a ban on so-called “gay propaganda” that effectively makes nearly any public discussion of gay equality a crime. The city of Moscow has outlawed Gay Pride parades for the next 100 years. Adoption of Russian children is forbidden to citizens of any foreign country that permits gay marriage. And legislation is now being considered that would permit the Russian government to remove gay people’s children from their homes. The Kremlin has chosen the LGBT community as its scapegoat in a populist campaign against supposedly decadent “Western” values, and there are ominous signs of much worse to come. Violent attacks against Russian gays or suspected gays are more and more common. Videos of young LGBT people being taunted and tortured have been widely distributed on the Internet.
‘Those are the stories that get the headlines, but there is much more to the Russian LGBT men and woman I have met. It is my hope that this documentary will educate viewers to their reality.’
Lucas is hoping to raise $70,000 to complete the film. If you’d like to help, head over to KickStarter.
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