LGBT activists who last week met with President Obama shortly before he left Russia after the G20 Summit said that they feel "let down" after the meeting.
According to Euronews, Obama told the activists that he has to consider his overall relationship with the Russian Federation.
One of the activists, Igor Kotchetkov of LGBT network, told Euronews Sept. 7, "The President said that he can't prioritize human rights in his relationship with Russia because there are other issues (to consider) as well. I disagree with the President because, in my view, by doing so, we narrow our chances of cooperation in other areas."
Obama invoked his history as a community organizer before heading into the meeting Sept. 6. "I'm now in government, but I got my start as a community organizer, somebody who was working in what would be called an NGO in the international community," Obama said. "And the work I was doing was helping poor communities have a voice in what was happening in their lives. And I got elected as President by engaging people at a grassroots level. So the kinds of activities that are represented here are critically important to Russia's development, and I'm very proud of their work."
The talks came during a time of strained relations between the Obama Administration and the Russian Federation. The U.S. government has a pending extradition request for NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, who has been living under temporary asylum in Russia. So far Russia has refused to grant the request, saying Snowden committed no crime on Russian soil. Furthermore Obama has been lobbying for military intervention against the Syrian government, with whom Russia has very strong ties.
Obama has also denounced the Russian anti-gay legislation but has not endorsed a boycott of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.
Meanwhile, members of President Vladimir Putin's ruling party continue with legislation that clamps down on the Russian LGBT population. Thursday a member of the Duma tabled a draft law that added homosexuality to a list of parental situations for which a child could be removed from a household, the Guardian reported.
"In the case when a parent has sexual contact with people of their own gender, the damage that can be inflicted on the psyche of a child is enormous," Alexei Zhuravlyov, author of the draft, wrote.
See related story at www.windycitymediagroup.com/lgbt/-Queer-Nation-Article-proves-Stoli-is-Russian-Vodka/44315.html .