In Kazan, the court fined the legal entity of the bookstore "Chitai-Gorod" 800,000 rubles in a case regarding "LGBT propaganda" due to the books of Fredrik Backman.

      This was reported by the publication KazanFirst. The Vakhitovsky District Court of Kazan fined the chain bookstore "Chitai-Gorod" 800,000 rubles under the article on "propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations" (Article 6.21 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation). KazanFirst reported this. According to sources from the publication, books by Swedish author Fredrik Backman were sold in one of the bookstores in Kazan. The specific work in question has not been disclosed. KazanFirst only writes that the work discussed "non-traditional sexual relations among young hockey players." Earlier, in other regions of Russia, a bookstore was held accountable under Article 6.21 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation due to Backman's books "Bear Corner" and "Us Against You." The action of the book "Bear Corner" takes place in the Swedish town of Bjornstad. The central plot involves a rape committed by one of the leading players of the junior hockey team. "Us Against You" is a sequel to "Bear Corner." It tells about a small town in Sweden, whose residents' hopes are tied to the local hockey team. Tragic events on the eve of an important game divide the town's population into two camps. On the website of the Vakhitovsky District Court of Kazan, "Idel.Realii" discovered an administrative case under part 1 of Article 6.21 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation against LLC "New Book M" — one of the legal entities of "Chitai-Gorod." The case went through two court sessions, and the decision was announced on March 4. The ruling has not yet been published on the court's website. It was only stated that "a ruling was issued to impose an administrative penalty." At the end of January, the press service of "Chitai-Gorod — Bukvoed" confirmed to "Mediazona" that administrative cases had been initiated against their structures in several regions of Russia for selling five novels, including "Bear Corner" and "Us Against You." Alexander Brychkin, the general director of "Chitai-Gorod," told "Mediazona" that these works by Backman are not listed in "registers of extremist and other prohibited literature." According to Brychkin, the books had to be removed from sale. The general director of "Chitai-Gorod" stated that "the procedure for holding accountable <…> for the sale of books that are not officially prohibited by court decision, which are published and put into circulation by publishers on legal grounds, is extremely contradictory." In December 2022, Vladimir Putin signed a package of laws prohibiting "propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations" and "propaganda of gender change and pedophilia." One of the laws prohibits "propaganda" of LGBT in any goods sold in the Russian Federation — films, books, advertisements, and audiovisual services. For violating the ban on "propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations," a fine of 50,000 to 400,000 rubles is imposed on individuals, 100,000 to 800,000 rubles on officials, and 800,000 to 5 million rubles or suspension of activities for up to 90 days on legal entities. In November 2023, the Supreme Court of Russia recognized the non-existent "international public movement LGBT" as an "extremist organization" and banned its activities on the territory of Russia. Subscribe to our channel on Telegram.