Germany: Drag queen campaigner sews mouth shut over Russian anti-gay laws

FROM PINK NEWS

An online video has made the rounds recently, depicting a German drag queen sewing up her mouth in protest of the controversial anti-gay laws and violence in Russia.

Barbie Breakout is best known for her DJ work in Berlin nightclubs, but her recent online campaign has criticised the German government for not taking a stand against the recent anti-gay “propaganda” law passed in Russia.

In the video, she can be seen piercing a threaded needle through her lips while she remains mute and staring at the camera. With each thread, she pulls the cotton end tight, and gradually seals her whole mouth shut.

During this ordeal, blood flows from the campaigner’s wounds, and although she manages to keep a straight face throughout, by the end she is visibly in pain.

The second part of the video is an off-screen commentary criticising Germany for not opposing the anti-gay “propaganda” laws in Russia.

President Vladimir Putin signed the law in June banning the promotion of “non-traditional relationships” toward minors, a move that has been criticised as part of a broader crackdown on Russia’s gay community.

Four Dutch tourists shooting a film about gay rights in Russia were arrested last month, the first foreigners to be detained under the new law.

Although Breakout Barbie has no personal affiliation to Russia, she told Die Welt newspaper she felt deeply affected by the widespread violence against gay people in the country.

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