By Albert Lin
The Sochi Olympics open on Feb. 7, and Russia’s position on LGBT people has been made clear. However, Sochi Mayor Anatoly Pakhomov took the government ban on the promotion of “nontraditional” sexuality to minors to an interesting place when he declared in a BBC interview that his city has an LGBT population of zero.
When asked if LGBT athletes or supporters would be welcome in Sochi, Pakhomov said, “Our hospitality will be extended to everyone who respects the laws of the Russian Federation and doesn’t impose their habits on others. We just say that it is your business, it’s your life. But it’s not accepted here in the Caucasus where we live. We do not have them in our city.”
