Russian Pride Activist Convicted of "Popularizing Homosexuality"

Interfax has a story that begins:

A court in Ryazan has found the organizers of two public events protesting homophobia guilty of popularizing homosexuality and ruled they be fined 1,500 rubles each.

Nikolay Bayev and Irina Fet were reportedly found guilty for carrying signs saying "Homosexuality is normal" and "I am proud of my homosexuality."

Ryazan is a city about three hours from Moscow. There are currently several appeals to the European Court of Human Rights regarding Moscow's refusal to permit gay pride parades, although a parade recently occured without the city's permission, according to an article in the UK Gay News.

[Thanks Towleroad!]