In the past year, the Putin-lead Russian government has signed into law a series of scathing anti-gay bills that blatantly discriminate against gay people throughout the world. Most recently, a "gay propaganda" law was passed that openly sanctions and institutionalizes homophobia in Russian society.
Meanwhile, Russia will be hosting the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, putting itself on the world stage as host of all nations in a display of civil unity. But Russia, boasting an agenda that flies so openly in the face of human rights, is acting far beyond the scope of a modern civil society. If President Obama is a true defender of gay rights, as he professes to be, he should call on Russia to end its anti-gay policies and threaten to boycott the Winter Olympics in protest.