The play was featured in the national press, as was a petition, shared internationally as well as in the UK, that was signed by over 40,000 people. But while the petition website looked similar to groups like change.org or Avaaz, it was hosted by a controversial Spain-based advocacy group with links to the extreme Christian right in the US and Eastern Europe, whose intentions are to roll back legislation on abortion and LGBT rights.

A report in 2021 from the European Parliamentary Forum for Sexual and Reproductive Rights, a network of members of parliaments from across the continent, listed CitizenGo as one of the main religious extremist actors in anti-gender activism between 2009 and 2018 in Europe, having spent nearly $33 million on funding ranging from activities like sponsoring anti-gender network meetings to supporting likeminded groups.

It also found that CitizenGo had historically received funding from the now-sanctioned Russian oligarch Konstantin Molofeev – described by the US as “Putin’s right arm for operations of political interference in Europe”. CitizenGo was additionally accused this year in a Mozilla Foundation report of paying people to manipulate Twitter trending topics around abortion in Kenya.

CitizenGo’s recent campaign for theatres in the UK to scrap an upcoming production of The Family Sex Show claimed the show was like “taking [children] to a seedy peep show or strip club!” and was “a blatant and extremely concerning attempt to sexualise children prematurely.” The play was due to be performed in theatres in Bristol, Bath and Norfolk.

The hosting theatres have now cancelled all of the programmed shows apart from one which became invite-only. Bristol’s Tobacco Factory said the cancellation was “due to the unprecedented threats and abuse directed at our building and team."

Right wing activists targeting content involved in relationships and sex education programming for being inappropriate for children despite expert consultations appears to be becoming increasingly common in the UK. In the last week, there has been extensive coverage of 5,000 Welsh parents suing the government over a new curriculum from tabloid media and prominent right wing voices online, often misleadingly outlining it would “force children as young as three to learn about sex and gender identity.”

The Scottish Family Party has also been posting leaflets through doors ahead of council elections asking families “What are they teaching our children?” and criticising that secondary school curriculums inform young people about different kinds of sex. Many of these criticisms often deliberately ignore how different information is introduced to young people at different developmental stages in an age appropriate manner and supported by internationally approved guidance.

There was criticism that the The Family Sex Show was watchable for children aged 5+, that it would involve 5 minutes of nudity on stage, as well as encourage attendees to look at footage of animals masturbating and listen to songs with lyrics such as “I sometimes have a fiddle with my penis and my balls. Tou-u-u-u-ch it.” These elements of the show prompted widespread outrage from right-wing accounts on Twitter, many of which directed attention to the online petition on CitizenGo’s website.

In The Stage, a trade newspaper about theatre, associate editor Lyn Gardner wrote that she had seen the show in an early development stage and thought it was “a thoughtful and inspiring piece of theatre designed to be shared by parents, carers and children together and which comes with accompanying workshops and discussions.”

Signatories of the CitizenGo petition do not need to include their postcode or address when they sign, meaning that anybody from around the world can add their name to their campaigns, despite their targets often being country-specific.

Some campaigns are introduced to the website by CitizenGo themselves; others have been started by single issue organisations, such as anti-abortion groups Society for the Protection of Unborn Children and Right to Life, or bigger groups attempting to change legislation across Europe such as Poland’s Ordo Iuris, an ultra conservative think tank.

Source: Vice News

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