Secret Telegram channels providing shelter for LGBTQ+ individuals in Russia

In September 2019, after working as an LGBTQ+ rights advocate for nearly 20 years and co-founding several organizations, Sozaev learned that the Kremlin was aware of his activities when he traveled to the United States to visit friends. He did not return to Russia. Making this decision wasn’t easy. Sozaev knew that not returning would mean “surrendering everything he loved and valued to the enemy, an inhumane political regime and bigoted homophobes.” While in the US, though, she noticed that she began experiencing symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder: depression, hypervigilance, sleep problems and poor concentration. These symptoms worsened as the return day approached. “My psychology and my body told me ‘no,'” he says. He applied for asylum.

Five years later, life for LGBTQ+ Russians has become even scarier than it was when Sozaev left. Over the last decade, citing “gay propaganda” laws targeting Sozaev, President Vladimir Putin has imposed further restrictions on the freedoms of queer citizens and stated his desire to return the country to “traditional family values.” Last year, Russia passed a law banning gender reassignment therapy. In March, the government added the “LGBT movement” to its list of extremist and terrorist organizations. This is a “direct government campaign targeting queer people,” says Ksen Pallegedara Murry, a family law attorney in Oregon who works with LGBTQ+ clients and Russian immigrants. As authorities raid gay bars, queer Russians have moved out of open social networks and into private Telegram chats, where they can organize, socialize, and find the support and resources they need to escape.

“Telegram is now a tool of empowerment for Russian LGBTQ+ individuals,” says Sozaev. This platform allows them to “feel and see that they are not alone. This breaks isolation and restores people’s faith in their own power.” After arriving in the US, he started his own Telegram channel to provide assistance to the Russian-speaking LGBTQ+ community in the US. This channel has over 2,000 subscribers and does not include unsubscribed viewers.

Sozaev’s channel is just one of many, and exactly how many there are is almost impossible. About half of Russia’s 140 million population uses Telegram, so being on the messaging app doesn’t attract unwanted attention. But LGBTQ+ citizens routinely create new channels to avoid government surveillance. Under Russia’s latest restrictions, any website deemed to contain pro-LGBTQ+ content is added to the national block list and becomes inaccessible without a VPN (even VPNs are in danger). Telegram remains the best option. Because it allows large group chats (channels can have unlimited subscribers; groups are limited to 200,000 people) and private messages, Telegram enables LGBTQ+ people in Russia and beyond to help each other in groups or one-on-one. However, it is not completely safe; government surveillance is a constant concern, and the app has become a hub for the Kremlin’s anti-queer propaganda.