According to Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer’s office, there is still no response from Vladimir Putin in response to a strongly-worded letter urging the Russian president to repeal the country’s harsh anti-gay law.
The letter was signed by Dyer, St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman and Tallahassee Mayor John Marks and sent in late January. All three cities have sister cities in Russia: the City of Orenburg for Orlando, the City of Krasnodar for Tallahassee and the city of St. Petersburg for St. Petersburg.
Here’s an excerpt from the letter:
“Our cities are proud of the longstanding relationships we have cultivated with the people of Russia. For decades, our sister city programs have played a significant role in improving the post-Cold War relations between Floridians and Russians. It is due in great part to our concern for our friends in Russia that we are disturbed to learn about any potential infringement upon the rights of persons identifying as LGBT. Each of our cities, as well as our Russian sister city counterparts, is home to countless persons identifying as LGBT and entitled to the same rights and privileges as everyone else.”
City of Orlando public information officer Cassandra Lafser checked the mayor’s office mail log Feb. 5 and reported that there is no record of a response from Putin.
