Welcome to Russia, a place where homosexual people are not allowed to kiss their partners and declare openly that they are gay, or they face the consequences of imprisonment or fines up to a couple hundred dollars.

“It seem like a bit of a throwback to the Victorian Age,” Upper School adviser of Gay/Straight Alliance Eric Severson said.

Severson refers back to an early open gay man, Oscar Wilde. Wilde, who was sentenced to prison for homosexual acts in the 1890s. The Victorian era ended over a century ago, and many countries have already started passing laws for gay marriage and rights for gay people. Why hasn’t Russia?

Russia wants to preserves the early traditions however as times change, attitudes change and so this change needs to come to the realization that rules need to change. The international community should be holding campaigns to boycott the Olympic Games because the laws that Russia has passed are unjust and violate human rights. The censorship of and killing of homosexual people is completely unacceptable; countries need to progress and change their laws to become more accommodating of all people, especially homosexuals.

“They changed the policy after they were chosen to have the Olympics,” junior Evan Leduc said. “It’s kind of a mixed feelings thing.”

The policy Leduc referenced is the crackdown on gay propaganda, should have been reviewed and dismantled before the International Olympic Committee chose Russia as the place to hold the 2014 Olympic Games.

The Sochi Games should have been boycotted until Russia decided to change its laws, considering many people around the world have started petitions against it already. A petition created by Change.org, which asks sponsors of the 2014 Sochi Olympic Games to crack down on the anti-gay laws, has gathered over 200,000 signatures to date.

There is no chance the United States will not be participating the Sochi Olympics. Despite the athletes having their own beliefs about the issue, the US has warned the 2014 American Olympic Team not to protest against the laws.

Violence and censorship toward any group are reprehensible and appalling, and violate international standards of justice. Russia’s laws are based on Biblical condemnation of homosexual behavior, but religious doctrines on homosexuality provide no justification for the broad persecution and suppression of gays seen in Russia.

Participating in Sochi’s Olympic Games suggests indifference or even tolerance towards these human rights violations.

The Olympic Games are meant to foster world peace and unity. No matter the race, gender, or sexual orientation of participants, the games are meant for everyone.

Click to read the Sports story on this year’s Olympics.