Russian, US Religious Right Conference, 'Invasion of Radical Liberalism'; 'Family Rights'

Russian and American Christian fundamentalists Vow To Fight ‘Totalitarianism’ Of Modern Society. Dancing babies, fake princes, and sanctioned Russians -- all on day one. By Casey Michel, Think Progress, Sep 16, 2018. EXCERPTS:

CHISINAU, MOLDOVA — A few days after barely escaping serious injury in a car crash, Moldovan President Igor Dodon wore a back brace to speak before a gathering of American and Russian Christian fundamentalists in Chisinau. While Dodon enthusiastically pledged fealty to the crowd of far-right religious activists, he wasn’t able to generate as much excitement as the dancing baby that followed him onstage.

The World Congress of Families (WCF) conference represents the most prominent collaboration between sanctioned Russian officials and the U.S. Religious Right. String orchestras provided the soundtrack to complaints about the so-called “Deep State” preventing U.S. President Donald Trump from building better ties with Moscow. The organizers claimed to have a global reach, yet non-white participants could be counted on two hands. The venue was a lavish affair- little surprise, since sanctioned Russian oligarch Vladimir Yakunin is allegedly one of WCF’s primary financiers.

Opening rhetoric was peppered with allegations of the “aggressive invasion of radical liberalism” and claims that modern society is akin to “totalitarianism.” Speaker Levan Vasadze even called for countries to remove individual rights wholesale from national constitutions. "The subject of which will not be the rights of the individual- the subject will be the rights the family.” Dodon joined in the extremist chorus, claiming that LGBTQ rights in Moldova should be “strongly discouraged, or even outlawed.” Dodon added that Moldova needs to be protected from a rising “anti-family philosophy. I’d even call it an anti-family ideology.”

Another speaker pointed toward increasing family sizes as a means to decrease immigration rates in Europe. One speaker, Australian lobbyist Lyle Shelton, compared modern liberalism to Soviet-era totalitarianism, saying, “Thank God [liberals] are not shipping us off to Kazakhstan.” - More.

https://thinkprogress.org/russian-and-american-christian-fundamentalists-vow-to-fight-totalitarianism-of-modern-society/