ACT UP Crashes Stoli Event

The activist group took on Stoli at a gay event in New York Tuesday.

BY Michelle Garcia

July 31 2013 5:27 PM ET

A small group of ACT UP members crashed an event Tuesday night sponsored by vodka brand Stoli, a company that has found itself in the middle of a boycott of Russian spirits now that the country has banned so-called LGBT propaganda.

Activists arrived at The Most Original Stoli Guy: New York competition at Splash bar with signs that read, "Russia Kills Gays," "Dump Stoli," and "Boycott Russia," according to Gay City News.

The bar's security promptly shoved the demonstrators away from the stage. As they were being escorted, the event's drag queen host could be heard saying, "Look at those assholes being taken out of the bar," and "This is America, not Russia."

ACT UP organizer Mark Milano said there were Stoli executives attending the event who "saw their event crashed."