Activists should take to the Internet during Olympics to protest anti-gay law

At the Winter Olympics next week, Russian President Vladimir Putin will likely try to subdue gay propaganda. Putin, however, cannot control the venue that can bring everyone in the developed world together: the internet. This is where pro-gay advocates should protest Russia’s intolerance.

Russia’s law, which was passed in June, bans all forms of propaganda that advocate for ‘nontraditional sexual relationships.’ At the Olympics, pro-gay demonstrations will be limited to designated venues determined by Russia’s Interior Ministry. While Putin has stated repeatedly that homosexual athletes will be welcome in Sochi, he also advised these athletes to “leave the children alone,” according to a Jan. 17 Washington Post article.

As Russia’s president, Putin reserves the right to mitigate conflicts such as demonstrations and propaganda in the country that he leads. He cannot, however, control activists who are not attending games but still watching from afar.

To call attention to the issue of the ambiguous law, activists not attending the games should circumvent Putin’s limits on the right to protest by taking their grievances to social media.

Though momentum builds and fades quickly on the Internet, the combination of a viral campaign and the most-watched global event on the calendar could ensure that the human rights conflict remains relevant long after the closing ceremony.

The Olympics have a long and successful history as a platform to expose social injustices and firmly instill them in the public consciousness. In Berlin in 1936, African-American US track star Jesse Owens won four gold medals and helped dispel the Aryan superiority myth that Adolf Hitler hoped to showcase during the games. In Beijing in 2008, negative attention toward China’s noxious atmosphere helped make the issue a point of global concern.

In 2014, it is even easier to bring these issues to the forefront. Social media gives voices to everyone that can watch and follow the Olympics around the world — not only the athletes and reporters in attendance.  

The Olympics do not just have to be an exciting, transient sporting event; the games can serve as a vehicle for social change. While Putin is doing his best to subdue the issue, it is already too prevalent to remove from the public consciousness during the games.

If activists combine the visibility of the games and the momentum of the internet, then they can ensure the issue stays relevant long after the Olympics are complete.