But those harsher laws are evidence of political change. Had it not been for those social movements then no attention would have been brought to the issues, causing no reaction at all. This is similar to the united states where, because of the large LGBT social movement, laws have been made reacting to the growth.
The question doesn't say positive political change. It just asks if social movements are effective at pressuring states into change. Because Russia passed the law outlawing "Gay Propaganda", this shows that not even Russia is immune to the social movement. They have to try finding ways to stop the spread of the movement because of how effective it is.
Yes, social movements are effective ways to pressure states into political change as seen with the continued restrictions and the global pressures placed on Russia based on LGBT Rights. Within Russia, the government is forced to react to the growing social movements like Moscow Pride and Russia LGBT Network by instituting further restrictions on the spread of LGBT information. This can also be seen by the President of the United States and other world leaders meeting with Russian Gay Rights activists, Global boycotts of Russian Products, and World Leaders condemning Russia for their anti-gay policy.
https://www.cnn.com/2013/08/01/world/
