LGBT Rights
and the
Twinning of
Manchester & St. Petersburg
Public Opinion
In order to get a variety of opinions surrounding Manchester's Relationship with St. Peterburg and the gay communities, a survey was conducted in Manchester to gain an insight into public attitudes surrounding the issues. The questions were based on whether differences could begin to affect relationships and how important the friendship between Manchester and St. Peterburg is. Below are a series of quotes which the project group feel speak volumes on the matter. also shown are the results of the survey itself.
"It is a sensitive topic, and clearly it could begin to affect the relationship between Manchester and St. Peterburg, but aslong as there is support for the gay communities in Russia the relationship should continue to be strong" Female, 50, Lesbian
"The relationship between Manchester and St. Petersburg is precious and we shouldnt end such a long friendship over and issue that could change in the near future" Male, 20, Gay
"Russia should be able to evolve on its own terms without the pressure of other nations" Male, 45, straight
Public Survey
Below are the results shown from a survey which was carried out in Manchester in 2014. You can find out what questions were asked by clicking on the document link at the bottom of the page. The purpose of the survey was to gain a basic understanding of attitudes towards the LGBT community in Manchester and the publics reaction towards the current issues surrounding Russia and their treatment of LGBT communities.
Feel free to have a look at the questionaire and also fill out our Poll!
Survey findings
Small Tile Mosaic of the Gay Pride flag which can be found in various spots of Manchester City Centre, Built into walls and pavements.
"Manchester Is very proud to have an intergrated gay community and its difficult to be partners with a country which is not, without change it could begin to strain the friendship" Female, 31, Straight
These charts ( Click on the document button below) show the results of the survey conducted on Manchester’s public. The results are interesting as they show that the majority of participants have been and visited Manchester’s gay village and believe that the gay community is largely accepted and integrated. In addition another interesting aspect of the results, is that a large proportion of respondents who did belong to the Gay community felt that the twinning should not end just because of LGBT issues, with some stating at the side of the question ‘the friendship is much bigger than this’ and others arguing ‘Russia should be allowed to come to terms with its LGBT community in its own time without pressure from other countries." However the most thought provoking response, was ‘the twinning should remain as it is, with all the negative aspects those LGBT communities are enduring in Russia, they need all the support they can get, not losing friendships.’ Hopefully the results and statements can help you to understand the current attitudes in Manchester Surround not just our gay community, but also that in Russia.