TORONTO — A growing chorus of voices is calling on the Miss Universe Organization to pull this year’s pageant out of Moscow to protest Russia’s strict new anti-gay laws.
This year’s event is scheduled to take place Nov. 9 at Crocus City Hall in Moscow.
“As a lifelong pageant fan, I’m shocked and disappointed that the Miss Universe Organization has chosen to host its competition this year in Russia, where LGBTQ people are under attack,” reads a post by Francesco Pascuzzi of New Jersey on change.org, where his petition has collected more than 23,000 names.
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“When the Miss Universe Organization allowed transgender beauty Jenna Talackova to enter the Miss Universe Canada pageant in 2012, reversing its previous policies on the matter, it sent a strong and unequivocal message in favor of equality and of the LGBTQ community,” Pascuzzi said. “Choosing Russia as a host country undermines this progress.”
Andy Cohen, who co-hosted the two most recent Miss Universe pageants, said Wednesday he will not return this year because Russia’s “discriminatory policies make it unsafe for the gays who live there and gays coming to work or visit.”
Among those who signed Pascuzzi’s petition is Abby DePhillips, Miss Teen New Jersey 2013. “Allowing Russia to host Miss Universe 2013 pushes us back years and years,” she wrote. “I believe the MUO needs to find a new location, preferably one with better laws and values.”
There has been no public statement from the Miss Universe Organization, which is co-owned by Donald Trump and NBC Universal, and a spokesperson was not available to speak to Global News.
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