Readers & Writers for LGBT
Chechens
started out with a Facebook conversation between authors Dale
Cameron Lowry
and Olivia Helling in mid-April, after news of the targeted imprisonment,
torture and executions of gay men started coming out of Chechnya. Other authors
and readers became involved, and we have two main fundraisers we focus on:
·
an online charity auction running through
12 noon CDT on Saturday, May 13, with all proceeds going to the Russian LGBT Network, Rainbow
Railroad, and other organizations providing direct assistance
One of the participants to the auction is Liane
Bennett, a quilter who donated a
beautiful lap quilt that has already attracted several bids. Here,
she talks about why she decided to get involved:
‘If everyone does a little, it amounts to
a lot’
by Lianne Bennett
I have
felt helpless on some level or another since the American Presidential election
last November. To combat that feeling I've tried many things: increasing my
monetary donations to charities I already support, giving regularly to my local
(Muslim-friendly) food pantry, writing letters and postcards to my
representatives regarding issues I feel strongly about, wearing a safety pin at
work (I don't know if that's a thing or not—it's supposed to represent that I'm
a safe person for anyone struggling with 'other-ness' problems), looking for
volunteer opportunities with the LGBT center near me...
Nothing
really feels like it's enough, but I remind myself that if everyone does a
little, it amounts to a lot.
Then I
started seeing the news of gay men being detained in Chechnya. I was disturbed
and tried to pay attention to see what coverage there was about it (way too
little, early on). A couple of articles about camps being set up, and torture
happening, and I started posting links to the information on my social media. I
wanted to write letters, but that helplessness returned: who do we write to
when so many voices are already being raised for all of the domestic problems
we're neck-deep in? I was furious when I received a response on Facebook from a
family member doubting the veracity of the articles.
I've
done some real soul-searching since November. I'm bisexual, and I'm in a
long-term, monogamous, heterosexual relationship. It would be easy to hide that
I'm queer. But I have decided that I will not do that. Whatever happens in this
country or around the world, I'm not going to pretend I'm heterosexual.
So in my
darkest imaginings, I see the possibility that it could be me interned, and the
many queer people I love as well. The situation in Chechnya is personal to me.
I cried
with gratitude when I saw former Vice-President Joe Biden speak out against
what's happening. There still wasn't (and isn't) as much coverage as I thought
there should be, but the news was out there, and no matter that I had a friend
remind me that 'there's other things going on', this was where my heart was,
and I wanted to do something!
I just
still didn't know what I could possibly do.
When I
received the email that Dale Cameron Lowry (and others, I soon found) had
researched the groups who are actually working to help victims and was donating
proceeds from their book sales, it was like a spotlight lighting my way to
actively make a difference. I bought their book (again—I already owned it for
myself) and gifted it to a friend, and I struggled through the language barrier
and the foibles of credit cards and international transactions to donate all I
could spare.
The
generosity of the writers donating proceeds has snowballed into the auction, in
which I couldn't contribute as a writer but still found a way to participate.
I'm promoting the auction all I can, and I hope that together we'll make a much
bigger impact than any of us could make on our own.
----
Liane
Bennett is “an out-and-proud bisexual who's an avid reader but only an amateur
writer of LGBTQIA fiction. Since I don't have any published work to share, I
turned to a hobby of mine, quilting, to help raise funds.”
----
Ways to Get Involved
Readers
·
To learn
more about the situation in Chechnya — including news updates and how to make a
direct donation to a designated charity — visit Readers & Writers for LGBT Chechens
·
Sign up to attend our Facebook event and invite friends. It’s a great way to keep
up-to-date.
Authors, Publishers and Artists
If you're an author or artist
who would like help out, please sign up at Authors & Publishers for LGBT Chechens. There, you can also find answers to
frequently asked questions about royalty donations, the charitable
organizations that are helping LGBT Chechens, and more.
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