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“God condemns Pussy Riot” is the recent statement from Russian Church spokesman and priest Vsevolod Chaplin. Harsh, but it seems that if Pussy Riot has gotten God’s attention, that’s pretty awesome.
Three of the ten or so members, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, 23, Maria Alekhina, 24, and Yekaterina Samutsevich, 29, were jailed on February 21 after performing the so-called punk prayer “Holy Mother, Throw Putin Out!” at the Christ the Savior Cathedral for less than a minute. The lyrics called for the Virgin to set Russia free of Putin, along with some chorus lines equating the Church with shit.
Photograph: Anna Artemeva/AFP/Getty Images
Wearing short skirts and colorful hand made balaclavas, the women–two of whom are young mothers–epitomize not only hardcore feminism, but punk in its grittiest, most proactive form. Anonymity has always been the main principal because once individuality is removed, the message is heard that much louder. Even being so unceremoniously displayed behind bars to the whole world, their message has grown in power.
They face up to seven years in federal prison on account of “hooliganism,” “blasphemy,” “extremism,” and mainly “hatred.” Despite the crude outfits and the vulgar lyrics, their performances are always peaceful, with no damage to property or persons.
During an April 20th hearing, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova explained yet again that the reason for the performance was by no means to offend or to hurt, but to highlight the tight and symbiotic relationship between Putin and the Church. On June 20th the Tagansky court ruled that the trio will definitely be detained at least until July 24th, proving that Russia’s heaving fear of the Church and Putin is palpable.
Forming after Putin announced his return to presidency, Pussy Riot commenced in the fall of 2011. Their first video “Clear Up The Pavement” made its debut on November 7th, the anniversary of the 1917 Revolution. They are quoted saying in The St. Peterburg Times that “We are united by feminism, opposition to Putin’s regime and his vertical of power, anti-authoritarianism and leftist ideas.” The collective of feminists took a hardcore approach to express their extreme opposition and desire for a free society and the punk collective itself has grown drastically to approximately 30 people. They take heavy inspiration from the 1990s Riot Grrrl movement, as shown by their outrageous and provocative performances.
The group takes matters into their own hands and stages attention-worthy performances with a clear anti-Putin messages; these girls mean to be heard. Their iconic Red Square performance on January 20, 2012, saw eight of them standing on a platform in front of St. Basil’s Cathedral, in the freezing cold, wearing their short dresses, and rocking out for only a few minutes before removed by the authorities. Audacity? A copious amount of. Fear? Never.
The world is united over their outrage towards the imprisonment of these women, mothers, and artists. Over 10,000 signatures have been made calling for their release, 120 of which are famous and established persons, some even Putin supporters. Russia is divided on two fronts, pro and con, but it seems that although the cries for release are escalating, two people are refusing to hear them: Putin and the Patriarch. According to a recent March and April 2012 Levada poll, it appears that despite the fact that the slight majority of the people believe in secular decisions, 47% agree with the seven year sentence. The whole world has extended their support to the jailed young women.
Acclaimed actress and Putin-supporter Chulpan Khamatova not only criticized the decision, but also attended the Tagansky court ruling. It-girl Ksenia Sobchak also extended her condolences. Marcus Loening, Germany’s human rights commissioner, has expressed great sorrow and dismay over the supposed separation of state and church and the severe punishment imposed on the young women expressing their political opinion through their own choice of artistry. Kathleen Hanna, the Riot Grrrl herself, released a video appealing for their release. On June 23rd, NYC Knitting Factory as well as Philadelphia’s Cha Cha Rizzi hosted benefit concerts in defense of the women in order to raise money for their supporters. On May 11th a protest march took place in Berlin. Head of the Presidential Council of Human Rights, Mikhail Fedotov, said that the women should have been released for their pre-trial. A petition to free the members on change.org was started by Yaroslav Nikitenko, as well as a petition run by Amnesty International. At this point Putin has been re-elected for another term on March 4th 2012 and will hold office until 2018. In a country of such, literally, huge proportions, intellectuals, a rich history of revolutions and the arts, it is disappointing to see how a motherland punishes its own people, young, strong, fearless, and idealistic women who rather than talk about change, actively demand that change be made.
[...] A while back, contributor Irina Makrova blogged for us about the plight of Russian feminist performance art group, Pussy Riot which you can read here. [...]