13‑year‑old boy accused of “LGBT propaganda” in Russia. He now faces being sent to a special school for juvenile offenders

The lawyer representing the boy told Mediazona that he had shown a certain image or video to other children or their parents. They filed a complaint, and officials launched an investigation.

“He had no intention of spreading propaganda; he doesn’t even know what that is. It was just a joke that backfired. The child didn’t think about the consequences, but our system went into overdrive,” the lawyer explained.

Since the boy had not yet reached the age of administrative liability, meaning the case had to be dismissed, the police forwarded the materials to the Juvenile Affairs Commission.

The commission reviewed them and, on the “LGBT propaganda” charge, issued a warning. On the other charge, displaying extremist symbols, members of the commission decided that the child “needs to be reformed” and raised the possibility of transferring him to a special closed-type educational-correctional facility.

If this decision stands, the child will have to continue his studies at a special school for juvenile offenders. “According to the prevention authorities, he needs to be reformed exclusively in these centres,” says the lawyer. “In a closed-type special institution. [There] they live, study, and psychologists work with them.”

Furthermore, the boy, who had taken part in academic competitions and won creative contests, has already been registered as a juvenile offender. “The boy was an excellent student with good character references, but then something clicked—his hormones kicked in—and he wanted to joke around, to say something. Adults interpreted this as ‘oh my, he’s promoting something’,” explains the lawyer.

She has now appealed against the commission’s decisions in court. “The internet is something that’s accessible to everyone. The questions, of course, are for the authorities: why don’t they block access to all these videos that, to put it bluntly, promote non-traditional relationships? Even children can go online, find them and then show them to someone else. And the authorities already treat this as a form of propaganda,” she says.

The boy’s mother confirmed that an investigation into her son is underway, but declined to provide details, saying thr matter was “confidential.”