--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There was this very strange moment when…" description: "\"There was this very strange moment when the world discovered what was going on for LGBT people in Russia. It was very gratifying: I thought, there is a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1eb/masha-gessen-2322_bizarre_there-was-this-very-strange-moment-when_1344779.png" --- # There was this very strange moment when the world… ![“There was this very strange moment when the world discovered what was going on for LGBT people in Russia. It was very gratifying: I thought, there is a world out there, a saner world. It had felt sort of desperate and bizarre until that point.” quote by Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1eb/masha-gessen-2322_bizarre_there-was-this-very-strange-moment-when_1344779.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1eb/masha-gessen-2322_bizarre_there-was-this-very-strange-moment-when_1344779.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1eb/masha-gessen-2322_bizarre_there-was-this-very-strange-moment-when_1344779.png) > “There was this very strange moment when the world discovered what was going on for LGBT people in Russia. It was very gratifying: I thought, there is a world out there, a saner world. It had felt sort of desperate and bizarre until that point.” [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Seeing global support for LGBT rights revealed a hopeful, more compassionate world beyond Russia’s oppression. **In simple terms:** World shows compassion for LGBT rights. Key Takeaway Find solidarity in global allies. Themes LGBT rights hope solidarity social change Mood inspired determined Type motivational political When to use this quote - activism - community building - media campaigns Key Concepts human rights political activism Questions to Reflect On - How does global solidarity affect local movements? - What can individuals do to amplify support? A Different Perspective International support may be uneven and limited. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bizarre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bizarre/) [Desperate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desperate/) [Lgbt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lgbt/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [Putin needed an enemy, an Other, against which to mobilize. LGBT people are really convenient: we're sort of the ultimate foreign agent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/putin-needed-an-enemy-an-other-against-which-to-mobilize-lgbt-people/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [LGBT people are really convenient: we're sort of the ultimate foreign agent in Russia. There's no doubt in anyone's mind that the values that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/lgbt-people-are-really-convenient-we-re-sort-of-the-ultimate-foreign/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [I met too frankly preposterous, if it weren't for their banal evil, politicians and pastors who told knowing lies about the evils of homosexuality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/i-met-too-frankly-preposterous-if-it-weren-t-for-their-banal-evil/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [All across my home state, throughout the South, and around the country, LGBT people and their families are seeking basic respect and dignity. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chad-griffin/all-across-my-home-state-throughout-the-south-and-around-the-country/) Chad Griffin > [It really did take Billy Lucas's suicide to wake me up to, kind of, the damage of the success of the LGBT civil-rights movement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-savage/it-really-did-take-billy-lucas-s-suicide-to-wake-me-up-to-kind-of-the/) [Dan Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-savage/) > [Most Russians believe they've never met an LGBT person in their lives. Also they immediately see LGBT people as 'other,' lending to the success…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/most-russians-believe-they-ve-never-met-an-lgbt-person-in-their-lives/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [For example, if you are a blogger who wrote something about a local official and you're going to prison for that, you're a political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/for-example-if-you-are-a-blogger-who-wrote-something-about-a-local/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [“Then a strange moment came, a moment of the kind that determines the fate of nations, because when a crowd loses its fear of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/then-a-strange-moment-came-a-moment-of-the-kind-that-determines-the/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“We looked at each other, for a long strange moment that I’ve never forgotten, actually, like two animals meeting at twilight, during which some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/we-looked-at-each-other-for-a-long-strange-moment-that-i-ve-never/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [There is a strange moment in time, after something horrible happens, when you know it's true, but you haven't told anyone yet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/there-is-a-strange-moment-in-time-after-something-horrible-happens/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [“We were an island. Me and Holly. Completely alone in this strange moment.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-cross/we-were-an-island-me-and-holly-completely-alone-in-this-strange-moment/) [Julie Cross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-cross/) > [“Strange that at this moment, we're the closest we've ever been to each other, and yet for once you're not pushing back.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasmine-walt/strange-that-at-this-moment-we-re-the-closest-we-ve-ever-been-to-each/) [Jasmine Walt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasmine-walt/) > [“Strange, how a moment of existence can cut so deeply into our being that while ages pass unnoticed, a brief love can structure and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-l-peck/strange-how-a-moment-of-existence-can-cut-so-deeply-into-our-being/) [Steven L. Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-l-peck/) > [That strange moment when you have to stare at a text for five minutes to figure out how to reply.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/that-strange-moment-when-you-have-to-stare-at-a-text-for-five-minutes/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [When Kirk dies it was very emotional and very strange, in the moment and all the way through the process. I'd read it in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-d-moore/when-kirk-dies-it-was-very-emotional-and-very-strange-in-the-moment/) [Ronald D. Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-d-moore/) ## More by Masha Gessen > [There's this American pretense, which is the pretense of the journalist with the view from nowhere - which has somehow morphed into the journalist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/there-s-this-american-pretense-which-is-the-pretense-of-the/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [Where incompetence is prized, it is ever-present.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/where-incompetence-is-prized-it-is-ever-present/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [Pussy Riot have certainly changed some people's assumptions about the role of political art and the relationship between the intelligentsia and the church. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/pussy-riot-have-certainly-changed-some-people-s-assumptions-about-the/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [Trump, like Putin, has a demonstrably thin skin and short temper when it comes to being criticized by journalists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/trump-like-putin-has-a-demonstrably-thin-skin-and-short-temper-when/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [You risk everything if you so much as join a legal protest demonstration in Russia. It raises the stakes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/you-risk-everything-if-you-so-much-as-join-a-legal-protest/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [Donald Trump creates word salads. And that is awful to language, because we try to parse out what he's saying and try to find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/donald-trump-creates-word-salads-and-that-is-awful-to-language/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [It is the first time since 1993 that Russians have come out into the streets without an explicit permission from the government to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/it-is-the-first-time-since-1993-that-russians-have-come-out-into-the/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [I think Donald Trump was brought to power by Americans. They voted for him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/i-think-donald-trump-was-brought-to-power-by-americans-they-voted-for/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [In the 1990s, there was a lot of reform, and there was a lot of forward movement on a lot of fronts in Russia.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/in-the-1990s-there-was-a-lot-of-reform-and-there-was-a-lot-of-forward/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [Poverty and scarcity are actually very good for totalitarian societies. They maintain that sense of mobilization that's essential for totalitarian societies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/poverty-and-scarcity-are-actually-very-good-for-totalitarian/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [I think that Putin's strategy has been throwing a lot of money, fairly haphazardly, at a lot of projects aimed at disrupting Western relations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/i-think-that-putin-s-strategy-has-been-throwing-a-lot-of-money-fairly/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [Both Trump and Putin use language primarily to communicate not facts or opinions but power: it's not what the words mean that matters but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/both-trump-and-putin-use-language-primarily-to-communicate-not-facts/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [I worked both as a Russian journalist and an American journalist and ran a bunch of magazines in Moscow over the course of about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/i-worked-both-as-a-russian-journalist-and-an-american-journalist-and/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [I have no doubt that there are Russian efforts to disturb the fabric of American democracy, but they're disruption efforts. They're troublemaking efforts. They're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/i-have-no-doubt-that-there-are-russian-efforts-to-disturb-the-fabric/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [For years I was the only publicly out gay person who was not a full-time gay activist: my position as a quasi-foreigner gave me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/for-years-i-was-the-only-publicly-out-gay-person-who-was-not-a-full/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) [Explore all 171 Masha Gessen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) ## More Bizarre quotes > [“but 20 years from now it will be bizarre if you walk into a store and the store doesn’t know who you are.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-scoble/but-20-years-from-now-it-will-be-bizarre-if-you-walk-into-a-store-and/) [Robert Scoble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-scoble/) > [My illness is one often characterized by dramatic overspending - in my case through frenzied shopping sprees, credit card abuse, excessive hoarding of unnecessary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-behrman/my-illness-is-one-often-characterized-by-dramatic-overspending-in-my/) [Andy Behrman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-behrman/) > [Even the two times that I left, I never really felt like I left the band. It's very bizarre. It's like there's sort of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-wakeman/even-the-two-times-that-i-left-i-never-really-felt-like-i-left-the/) [Rick Wakeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-wakeman/) > [Consumer wants can have bizarre, frivolous, or even immoral origins, and an admirable case can still be made for a society that seeks to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/consumer-wants-can-have-bizarre-frivolous-or-even-immoral-origins-and/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [The single greatest pleasure that I have in doing ('Bizarre Foods') is when I meet families with 6, 7, 8-year-olds, or teenagers, who say,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-zimmern/the-single-greatest-pleasure-that-i-have-in-doing-bizarre-foods-is/) [Andrew Zimmern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-zimmern/) > [Someone once bought me loads of clothes from a charity shop - and sent them to me in a black bin liner. That was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-shaw/someone-once-bought-me-loads-of-clothes-from-a-charity-shop-and-sent/) [Suzanne Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-shaw/) > [I wrote the script of Patton. I had this very bizarre opening where he stands up in front of an American flag and gives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-ford-coppola/i-wrote-the-script-of-patton-i-had-this-very-bizarre-opening-where-he/) [Francis Ford Coppola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-ford-coppola/) > [The Kuiper belt region, which I call the third zone because it lies beyond the rocky terrestrial planets and beyond the giant planets, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/the-kuiper-belt-region-which-i-call-the-third-zone-because-it-lies/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [How I keep trying to force our story into a fairy tale, but from the beginning, it's been more like a nursery rhyme." 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