[JURIST] The organizers of a Moscow Gay Pride parade that was denied a permit [JURIST report] in May by Moscow's mayor, and then when held anyway in protest was marred by anti-gay violence, are considering filing a lawsuit against the Moscow city government [official website, in Russian] in the European Court of Human Rights [official website]. Before any move to the international court, however, the organizers plan to file with the Russian Supreme Court [officail website], hoping that a move away from Moscow city courts, which have repeatedly upheld bans on the parade, would remove any bias in favor of Mayor Yuri Luzhkov [MosNews profile], who has vowed to never allow the parades as long as he is in power.

Although a Moscow city court had upheld the ban [JURIST report] on the parade beforehand, the parade was held as scheduled, but ended in violence when approximately 100 religious and nationalist extremists began to attack [Washington Post report] the gay rights activists. Additionally, approximately 200 gay rights supporters were arrested for defying the ban. Another Moscow court ruled in August that bans on such parades are legal [JURIST report], citing safety concerns. MosNews has more. Gay.com has additional coverage. GayRussia.ru has local advocacy coverage.