"All that is needed for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing," - Edmund Burke
"It is my firm belief that the Olympic and Paralympic Games should be fully and unequivocally open to all athletes, officials, spectators and journalists who are able to participate, regardless of their nationality, gender, or sexual orientation. It is clear to me that the Russian parliament’s homophobic assault on the fundamental human rights of the LGBTQ community will prevent many of these individuals from safely and openly participating in Sochi." - Vancouver Mayor, Gregor Robertson
"Putin seems hell-bent on forcing LGBT people back into the closet and locking the door. This law is effectively a blanket censorship of any public expression of same-sex love, gay identity and LGBT human rights. It could result in the purging of books, films and plays with LGBT characters and story-lines from libraries, galleries, theatres and cinemas, including many classic works of art and literature. Without question, it's one of the most sweeping and harsh laws against LGBT freedom of expression anywhere in the world." - Peter Tatchell
"Russian anti-gay extremists, emboldened by (and many suspect, in cahoots with) the Putin Governments crackdown on gay and trans Russians, have begun kidnapping and beating gay men, especially teenage boys, with ads on gay social networks. When the boys and men show up for what they think is a date, they’re held hostage, abused, have urine poured on them, and then beaten." - John Aravosis
"Just six months before Russia hosts the 2014 Winter Games, Mr. Putin signed a law allowing police officers to arrest tourists and foreign nationals they suspect of being homosexual, lesbian or "pro-gay" and detain them for up to 14 days.... Earlier in June, Mr. Putin signed yet another antigay bill, classifying "homosexual propaganda" as pornography. The law is broad and vague, so that any teacher who tells students that homosexuality is not evil, any parents who tell their child that homosexuality is normal, or anyone who makes pro-gay statements deemed accessible to someone underage is now subject to arrest and fines. Even a judge, lawyer or lawmaker cannot publicly argue for tolerance without the threat of punishment." - Harvey Fierstein
"The new anti-gay law is symptomatic of President Putin’s increasing authoritarianism and his wider, generalised crackdown on civil society. It violates the Russian constitution, which guarantees freedom of expression, and the European Convention on Human Rights, which Russia has signed and pledged to uphold." - Peter Tatchell
" You shouldn’t be arresting people because they’re gay. And going along with it is wrong. I don’t know what the Olympic Committee will do because the Olympic Committee has blinders on and cares only about itself. And Olympic athletes, I understand: You’ve worked your asses off for this for years, but there are still bigger things than you hanging something around your neck." - Harvey Fierstein
"Every individual*must have the possibility *of practising sport, *without discrimination of any kind" - The Olympic Charter
Participation in these games must not be construed to be an endorsement of the policies and practices of the German government - AOC in 1936
‘No one is forbidding a sportsman with a non-traditional sexual orientation to come to Sochi. But if he goes out on the street and starts to propagandise it, then of course he will be held accountable. Even if he’s a sportsman, when he comes to a country, he should respect its laws.’ - Russian Minister of Sport, Vitaly Mutko
"The IOC has a clear rule laid out in the Olympic Charter (Rule 50) which states that the venues of the Olympic Games are not a place for proactive political or religious demonstration. No kind of demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda is permitted in any Olympic sites, venues or other areas" - IOC in 2013
"Russia’s Interior Ministry, which controls the police force, confirmed Monday that the country’s controversial anti-gay law will be enforced during the Sochi 2014 Olympics. The law enforcement agencies can have no qualms with people who harbor a nontraditional sexual orientation and do not commit such acts [to promote homosexuality to minors], do not conduct any kind of provocation and take part in the Olympics peacefully," - Russian Government News Agency RIA
"When it came to the liberation of South Africa from white-only rule and dismantling the outrageous system of apartheid, sport played a wonderful role. Through the imposition of sanctions from the early 1970s onwards, sport was able to very publicly isolate a country that granted voting power and human rights according to skin pigmentation alone. Most importantly, it highlighted the fact South Africa could not take its place in the family of nations when it treated its own citizens in such an abominable fashion." - Peter FitzSimons
"There was some talk about the Olympics being boycotted because of what Hitler was doing to the Jewish people in Germany. We aren’t interested in politics, you see, at all. We are interested in going and winning." - Olympic Athlete in 1936
"The Olympics are not a political statement, they are a place to let the world shine in peace and let them marvel at their youthful talents. I respect the LGBT community full heartedly, but I implore the world not to boycott the Olympic Games because of Russia’s stance on LGBT rights or lack thereof." - Johnny Weir in 2013
"An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last." - Winston Churchill
"Any country that puts money into Russia, and that’s what doing the Olympics is, [is guilty]. You can say, "It’s national pride and we’ll go there and we’ll take all the gold medals and show them." But you’ve just pumped billions of dollars into their economy. You are the enemy. And people have to understand that: You go along with them, you are a collaborationist. You go to Russia and spend your money there, you are part of the problem." - Harvey Fierstein
"I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear." - Nelson Mandela
"I would like to join the millions worldwide who are calling upon Russia to end its violent crackdown on the human rights and free expression of the LGBTQ community ahead of hosting the world in Sochi. I am also calling upon the International Olympic Committee and International Paralympic Committee to urgently explore every possible option to ensure that the next Olympic and Paralympic Games are hosted in a manner that guarantees the full, safe, and open participation of the LGBTQ community." - Vancouver Mayor, Gregor Robertson
"You shouldn’t be arresting people because they’re gay. And going along with it is wrong. I don’t know what the Olympic Committee will do because the Olympic Committee has blinders on and cares only about itself. And Olympic athletes, I understand: You’ve worked your asses off for this for years, but there are still bigger things than you hanging something around your neck." - Harvey Fierstein
"Thou shalt not be a victim, thou shalt not be a perpetrator, but, above all, thou shalt not be a bystander." - Yehuda Bauer
"I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented." -Elie Wiesel
"They thought we were stupid to do it, (hide Jews) of course; in fact, it was beyond their comprehension that we would risk so much for Jews." - Diet Eman
"Any man or institution that tries to rob me of my dignity will lose." - Nelson Mandela
"The first time it was reported that our friends were being butchered there was a cry of horror. Then a hundred were butchered. But when a thousand were butchered and there was no end to the butchery, a blanket of silence spread. When evil-doing comes like falling rain, nobody calls out "stop!" - Bertolt Brecht
"I think that just imposing fines on gays for homosexual propaganda among teenagers is not enough. Donation of blood and sperm should be forbidden from them. And their hearts, in case of an accident, should be buried in the ground or burned because they are unsuitable for a continuation of life." Russian National News Anchor, Dmitri Kisilev
"I would not worship a God who is homophobic and that is how deeply I feel about this. I would refuse to go to a homophobic heaven. No, I would say sorry, I mean I would much rather go to the other place." - Desmond Tutu
"When crimes begin to pile up they become invisible. When sufferings become unendurable the cries are no longer heard. The cries, too, fall like rain in summer." - Bertolt Brecht
"Silence is complicity, sponsorship is support. Any company that sponsors Sochi, will have their brand forever associated with the bloody images that are coming out of Russia. Do they want to take that chance? Companies should pull their sponsorship or risk widespread boycott." - Branded By Sochi