On January 28, the Direct Action anonymous telegram channel called on its subscribers to start complaining about Yandex because of its seven LGBT podcasts. One of them is a project by Kazan-based journalist Elena Dogadina titled Ways of Acceptance. She has informed "7x7" about the campaign against her.
LGBT opponents demand the podcasts be banned and their creators brought to justice. "We will destroy the leftovers of the LGBT community in Russia," one of the channel's posts reads.
Yelena Dogadina, who runs the Lesbian Daily podcast and telegraph channel, thinks that the Direct Action might be operated by followers of Vladislav Pozdnyakov, the creator of the Men's State. They publish reports on opponents of the military operation in Ukraine and members of the LGBT community. According to Dogadina, her podcast could now be removed and she could be prosecuted. At the same time, the journalist's channel on Yandex is categorized as 18+ and, formally, does not violate anything.
“I wonder what Yandex will decide: that their 18+ settings are enough, or they have to remove everything that has drawn attention?” the journalist asks.
On November 24, 2022, the State Duma passed a law banning LGBT, pedophilia, and gender reassignment propaganda. On December 5, the law was signed by Vladimir Putin. The first administrative case for LGBT propaganda was initiated on January 10 against Popcorn Books. The publishing house placed on its book covers a quote from the Constitution that prohibits censorship in Russia and guarantees freedom of mass information.
One of the first people in Russia to be prosecuted for LGBT propaganda is Dasha Koreika, a trans blogger from Tambov. In December, Duma member Yana Lantratova complained about her to the Prosecutor General’s Office claiming that Koreika and her friend Hilmi Forks promoted transgender and LGBT values, and insulted religious feelings.
