Yelena Leuchanka, a Belarusian basketball player, was recently arrested and kept in the Okrestina detention center for her participation in protests opposing the Lukashenko regime. Her story speaks to the broader human effects of the continuing protests in Belarus, as well as the ways that the state cultivates strong complicity amongst its constituents.
Russia's alleged intervention in Catalonia independence is currently under investigation. Russia's stance on Catalonia relates to its effort to weaken Western democracy.
On Thursday, November 5th, Pavel Krisevich, a Russian activist famous for his symbolic protests, performed a ‘mock crucifixion’ outside of Moscow’s FSB headquarters. His use of art combined with the motto “Down with the police state!” speaks to the ways in which the power dynamic between the police and the people in Russia maintains the authoritarianism that marks the region, as well as the potential for change towards liberal democracy.
The death of Irina Slavina, co-founder and editor-in-chief of the free journalism KozaPress, is the living evidence of media censorship and violation of free speech in Russia.
Protests recently erupted in Tarusa after the city's council changed the names of streets named after leaders in the Soviet Union back to their pre-revolutionary forms. While some tend to agree that the Soviet revolutionaries should no longer be glorified, those protesting feel that the re-naming of streets is a sign of fascism and an unwarranted rejection of the town's history
A famous Belarusian body-builder recently divorced her husband, a member of the riot police of Minsk, after she received threats following the release of his personal information via a doxing service. Her declaration that her divorce "Is what society wanted" speaks to the growing effect of protests in the region on individuals, as well as whether threats to personal livelihood will grow increasingly relevant in convincing the authorities to enact positive change.
As protests against the Lukashenko regime continue in Minsk, President Vladimir Putin of Russia made the decisive choice to officially express Moscow's support for the maintenance of Alexander Lukashenko's power. Though Russia initially had a "wait-and-see" stance on the protests, it appears that Putin's position has changed due to Russia and Belarus' interdependence for military supplies, monetary support, and political outreach.
The article describes the protests that took place in Belarus on the 18th of October 2020 and their relation to previous statements by Belarusian government agencies and foreign countries
Vladimir Putin and Bill Clinton's discussion about removing Yugoslavian leader Slobodan Milosevic in 2000 reveals the double-standard of Russian government.
Two members of the Russian feminist music group Pussy Riot were arrested this week for participating in a protest in demand of LGBTQ rights. The activists hung rainbow flags around Moscow on government buildings including the Presidential Executive Office and the Supreme Court. A journalist covering the event, Artyom Radygin, was arrested and later released, although his cell phone was never returned to him. These arrests point to the Russian government's censorship of any form of speech that criticizes or opposes them.
This article reports on the sanctions placed on Belarus by the EU and America because of election protests as well as the retaliation by Belarus and Russia.
In response to severe police suppression of protests in Belarus, developer Andrey Maximov designed a program that exposes the identities of police officers accused of abuse. While this is a positive evolution in terms of the Belarusian people's tactics of non-violent direct action, its efficacy will only be revealed by the nature of the response of the Lukashenko regime.
Protests movements across Belarus gained traction once again last week, following the 'secret inauguration' of President Lukashenko despite the contested results of his election on August 9th. As pro-democracy movements are increasingly met with violent suppression in the country, the fate of the Belarusian people remains in question as they continue in the fight to shape their historical process and geo-political climate.
Protests against the Lukashenko regime in Belarus have been met with increased violence by police authority following the contested elections of August 9th, as officers use similar techniques of brutality against civil dissent as those recently employed in Russia. As the fight for liberal democracy in the region continues, the media plays a distinct role in presenting the harm inflicted on protestors to the general population.
The history of drug activism in Russia following the fall of the Soviet Union is one of great significance and turmoil, spanning over twenty-two years and a variety of movements. While calls for the humanization and medical treatment of drug-users in Russia have been persistent, victims of the country's opioid epidemic are continually oppressed by law enforcement, as civil dissent is increasingly prohibited. As Russia's opioid epidemic worsens, and more individuals fall victim thereof, many aspects of the calls for change in the country are strikingly familiar to social justice movements globally.
