EA Sports' Annual FIFA game has received flak for disregarding Russia's law against gay propaganda. A seemingly innocent campaign to promote LGBT rights across a multicultural gaming platform has drawn the attention of several Russian MP's. In a precedent turn of events, the officials have asked the country's state communications oversight agency to take action against EA Sport's "FIFA 17."
The popular football game features free rainbow colored kits that support the Rainbow Laces Campaign set up by LGBT rights group Stonewall. According to Izvestia, Russian parliamentarians have asked Roskomnadzor (Russia's state oversight agency) to check EA's game for compliance with the Russian legislation to ensure that they are complying to the Russian law against gay propaganda.
Russian MP Valery Rashkin told Izvestia that creators of "FIFA 17" should introduce changes to the programming code of the game along the games age classification. Unless EA Canada wants to adopt corresponding restrictive measures.
FIFA 17 under fire from Russia MPs following support of pro-LGBTQ Rainbow Laces campaign https://t.co/wrBKFETRaT pic.twitter.com/4C6I7BwKH6
— GamesIndustry (@GIBiz) December 6, 2016
'FIFA 17' Latest News & Update: Not The First Time In Russia
The Rainbow Laces campaign aims to raise awareness against LGBT discrimination that combats homophobia, transphobia, and biphobia in sports. EA's "FIFA 2017" seems to have overestimated Russia's strong stance against LGBT propaganda.
The Russian Gay Propaganda Law was unanimously approved by Communist Parliamentarians on June 11, 2013.The law is aimed to protect children from being exposed to homonormativity, an argument that poses homosexuality as factor in contradicting traditional family values.
Since then Russian MP's have strengthened the law against open gay rights. They have even introduced a legislation that jails or fines individuals that are caught or speaking about their homosexuality. In a post by The Guardian, Roskomnadzor has blacklisted Deti 404 from operating in the Russian web space. Deti 404 is a group that supports LGBT teengers through post messages.
