FELGTB, Spain’s largest organization for LGBTQ rights, sent activists from six different countries to Russia to bring their #HiddenFlag project to life at the FIFA World Cup.
The silent outdoor protest created a human Rainbow Flag that creatively outsmarted Russia’s anti LGBTQ legislation
FELGTB challenged agency LOLA MullenLowe with the following brief: How do you denounce laws that discriminate against the LBGTI community while one of the World´s greatest events is happening?
The solution was an inventive outdoor advertising stunt that was inspired by the old adage about ‘hiding in plain sight’.
Each activist wore football shirts from their home nations and these national kit colours came together in protest to form the rainbow flag: Spain (red), Holland (orange), Brazil (yellow), Mexico (green), Argentina (blue) and Columbia (purple).
The group, organised in order and strung out in a line, walked around high profile sights and stood next to famous landmarks and buildings in Russia.
The outdoor initiative was then promoted with imagery and video across the organisation’s digital and social channels: including Facebook.
“On the eve of the World Cup inauguration and Pride month in Spain, the FELGTB and ElDiario.com asked us to come up with an idea to draw awareness to the discriminatory laws in Russia and put pressure on them to change,” said Pancho Cassis, ECD, LOLA MullenLowe.
“We needed to come up with an effective, irreverent and inspiring idea that also kept the people who are fighting safe. The Hidden Flag is a result of research, collaboration, conversation and activism, a process that is very aligned with our own values.”
Recent insights from a study by the Centre for Independent Social Research shows that hate crimes against the LGBTQ community have doubled since 2013.
Indeed, Human Rights Watch International says, “Russian police consistently fail to prevent harassment and attacks and to investigate anti-LGBT crimes.” This comes after reports emerged that at least 100 presumed gay men were being detained and tortured in Chechnya.
“Becoming visible is a huge risk in Russia but doing it in front of thousands of fans and reporters during the World Cup and with this smart and original protest is what really motivated us,” commented Uge Sangil, president of FELGTB Spain.
“The Hidden Flag gives visibility to all of the brave people who face discrimination, silencing and fear on a daily basis in Russia and other parts of the world were LBGTQ+ people are persecuted, humiliated or marginalized.”
Comment:
Despite the celebration and success of the 2018 World Cup, Russian legislation banning gay rights activism has been an ongoing and dispiriting subplot to the tournament both before and after kick-off.
While same-sex activity has technically been decriminalised in Russia since 1993, it was widely advised by authorities and organisers that sexuality should not be publicly displayed.
Indeed, before kick-off, LGBTQ fans were specifically warned about potential danger and backlash – some even received emails and social posts threatening violence.
Even a safe haven for LGBTQ and non-white football fans in St Petersburg was closed the day before the World Cup began.
This brilliant campaign – a silent protest hidden in plain sight – is a powerful, yet subtle response.
Among the other LGBT cause and protest campaigns leveraging Russia 2018, Paddy Power’s ‘From Russia With Equal Love’ was a standout initiative both in terms of innovation, attitude and practical utility (see case study).
Links:
FELGTB
http://www.facebook.com/FELGTB
http://www.youtube.com/user/FELGTB
LOLA MullenLowe
