The graphic scenes filmmaker Michael Lucas captured in this documentary are not only shocking on a political level but on an ethical one as well. Men and women are tortured, beaten, and even killed, because of their lifestyle. They’re called “dirt” by government officials and now have to compete with the introduction of “anti-gay” legislation. Under this law, LGBT people would be reprimanded for saying that they have equal rights as “normal” people. Sound familiar (read: Nazi Germany)? Needless to say, being gay in Russia makes for rough life. Lucas gives audiences a peek into this world in his eye-opening documentary, Campaign of Hate: Russia and Gay Propaganda.
Lucas talks to open and closeted gay men and women as they recall stories to the camera of growing up in homophobic Russia, where they risk family relationships, jobs, and their lives to be themselves. It’s raw and emotional, but these teenagers, young adults and grown men and women bravely describe their struggles. Lucas also interviews passerby-ers on the street, whose opinion of LGBT people are extremely terrible. Along with interviews, Lucas shows videos (which have since gone viral) of abuse and torture, made out of ignorance minds intent on “getting the gay out” of people.
LGBT men and women recall stories of growing up in homophobic Russia, where they risk family relationships, jobs and their lives to be themselves.
Attacks and slurs aside, the most shocking fact is that this is common practice in Russia. Hate crimes are becoming normalized and it has a lot to do with Vitaly Milonov, the Russian government official whose policies have influenced growing homophobia in Russia. Milonov’s interview is unbelievable, literally blaming being gay on mental disorders and sicknesses.
Campaign of Hate is a relatively short documentary, running just shy of an hour and a half long. English subtitles are used half the time as many interviews are conducted in Russian, with the occasional English speaker. It’s not the easiest film to sit through due to its subject matter, but it is an important one to see. Campaign of Hate acts as more of a public service announcement than an entertaining documentary, but a worthwhile experience nonetheless, if not to see the despicable and unbelievable state of current affairs for the LGBT community. If Michael Lucas set out to bring awareness of this ongoing torture and unconstitutional legislation in Russia, then this documentary is evidence of that success.
