Russian Parents Kidnap LGBTQ+ Children for Conversion Therapy

Amidst a broader crackdown on the LGBTQ+ community, parents in Russia are reportedly hiring gangs to abduct their children and subject them to banned conversion therapy practices.

• Parents in Russia are reportedly hiring gangs to kidnap their LGBTQ+ children and take them to conversion therapy centers, where they are subjected to practices banned in Western countries.
• Survivors who escaped to the West reported being imprisoned in isolated treatment centers, often alongside drug addicts and the mentally ill, and subjected to physical and psychological abuse.
• Such practices are illegal in the U.S. and Western European countries, but Russian President Vladimir Putin has led a crackdown on the LGBTQ+ community in his country.
• In November, the Russian Supreme Court labeled the 'international LGBT social movement' as 'extremist,' banning its activities, advocacy, and support within the country.
• Putin has also ordered the Ministry of Health to create an institute to study queer people, passed a bill banning gender-affirming surgery and treatment, and strengthened a ban on LGBTQ 'propaganda' in Russia.

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