4/8/19
Many might see yoga as a calming escape from the pressures of modern life. But some believe it’s a dangerous, homosexuality-inducing practice that could cause hunger strikes and prison riots. A spirited debate erupted after the introduction of yoga classes at two Moscow prisons prompted a lawmaker to make Russian officials aware of a theologian's conclusions on the matter. Yoga "provokes uncontrollable sexual arousal that can lead to homosexuality," read the findings included in a letter sent to the Prosecutor-General's Office by Yelena Mizulina, a member of the Federal Council, Russia's upper house of parliament. According to the daily Moskovsky Komsomolets, which described the letter as an appeal to Prosecutor-General Yury Chaika to investigate the legality of the initiative, it warned of unrest across the prison system if the practice of offering yoga classes spread. The reasoning, according to the newspaper, which had obtained a copy of the letter, was that because yoga classes were offered mainly to inmates working in catering, fellow prisoners unwilling to "take slop from the hands of gays" could unleash hunger strikes and riots. Classes had been suspended, the paper reported in its April 5 article.
"This is some monstrosity, a caricature," one social media user wrote. "I'd rather they focused on real problems in the country," wrote another. But on April 8, Mizulina fought back. She had forwarded conclusions made by Aleksandr Dvorkin, a well-known theologian specializing in the study of religious sects, to the Prosecutor-General's Office. Since 2013, the Russian government has waged a campaign to limit society's exposure to homosexuality, and officials have criticized what they often refer to as "nontraditional relationships." In 2013, the country introduced legislation banning gay "propaganda," with the goal of shielding children "from information promoting the denial of traditional family values." Rights groups have criticized the law as homophobic and discriminatory. Yoga classes were introduced in Moscow prisons in 2018 as a pilot scheme following the advice of rights activists, and the deputy head of Russia's penitentiary service, Valery Maksimenko, said the results have been very promising.
