IKEA drops lifestyle website in Russia over 'gay propaganda' fears

[tomm2thumbs]

Source: The Guardian

The Swedish flat-pack giant said it was dropping the magazine website, Ikea Family Live, because “a number of articles could be assessed as propaganda” under the law signed by President Vladimir Putin in 2013 despite opposition from activists and stars including Madonna. <snip>

“When we do business, we observe the legislation of the countries where we work, therefore to avoid violations, we have taken the decision to stop publishing the magazine in Russia,” Ikea said in a statement.

The magazine, which is published in 25 countries in print or online, features photos and interviews about real-life families’ interior decor “whatever their gender or sexual orientation”, Ikea’s press service says.

Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/mar/13/ikea-drops-lifestyle-website-russia-gay-propaganda-fears

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Apparently the money IKEA makes in Russia supercedes what the world thinks about their brand (ie. in 25 countries worldwide) and makes no difference to them -- nothing but the bottom line matters to them. If Putin's country felt ill towards blacks, or Jews or other nationalities/groups, would they have done this? Hmmmm.....

I suggest they would not.

I also suggest that their bottom line hereby should be influenced by those who believe this is wrong.

* Tossing my IKEA catalog in the trash as I type this -- I think United States store income should have a little more influence, along with that of another 25 countries worldwide, than the likes of one, Putin-foaming mess we lovingly call 'the former USSR *

[geek tragedy]

1. this is exactly what the vile regime in Moscow wants--to prevent its generally culturally backwards

and ignorant populace from being exposed to the notion that GLBT people are normal human beings who aspire to the same things in life.

So, instead, the masses get their infusion of homophobic propaganda from state media.

[uhnope]

2. what an outrage. they lost my business. K&R

[hrmjustin]

3. Wow! I guess LGBT people like myself don't count.

Won't be shopping in IKEA anymore.

[SoapBox]

4. If in doubt, just wipe out a portion of the world, to satisfy hatred...

So IKEA...did I get that right?

Or was it, the almighty $$$$$$$ is more important than living, breathing, loving gay human beings?

You should stop selling in Russia.

[shenmue]

5. People are afraid of chairs?

[awoke_in_2003]

11. Just the gay ones

[dbackjon]

6. Agreed - IKEA - gay friendly when it makes us money

Otherwise, sorry

[tomm2thumbs]

7. Apparently IKEA's backbone is made of cheap pressboard, just like their furniture

Put a little pressure on it and it snaps in a cloud of chemical sawdust. <cough cough>

[BigDemVoter]

8. It's certainly NOT a sacrifice for me to boycott Ikea.

They sell shit exclusively and call it a bargain.

[blkmusclmachine]

9. IKEA kinda sucks.

[davidpdx]

10. I agree that it sucks IKEA is folding to Russia's propaganda law

I fully support LGBT rights and oppose what Putin is doing in Russia.

At the same time this is one website. How many Russians actually have internet access? In 2014, there were 89.2 million out of 143.3 (both numbers from from Statstica) for about 62.2%. The internet is slow and heavily restricted in Russia. IKEA could have left their website up and let the Russia Government block it (in which case a good VPN would get around it) or shut it down. In the end they would have lost. Yes, in principal they would have at least stood up to the Russia Government, I agree. My guess is that the law is vaguely worded so that propaganda could be interpreted as almost anything that appears to be (and I use this term carefully) "gay".

[newthinking]

12. My relatives have 50MB throughput for $7 a month

and as far as I can tell they can hit everything that I can.

Of course in rural areas there access can be practically non-existent.

I often wonder where these stereotypes come from because they are not all accurate. But certainly if one has not been to the region or does not talk to people actually there it would be easy to believe.

Russian is the second most used language on the web.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_in_Russia

[davidpdx]

15. Honestly I would have guessed Chinese

[MisterP]

13. where do you find a rightist and a social democrat in the same room?

when https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yelena_Mizulina is alone

[Behind the Aegis]

14. This is what many said would happen.

The propaganda law was vague, which allowed it greater scope. The "defenders" of this bullshit said it would make the law "unenforceable."