Punks against Putin

Who are the feminist collective and Punk-Rock Band Pussy Riot?

Disclaimer: throughout this articles the word 'pussy' will be used frequently. (This is not for effect it is solely because the focus of this article is the group Pussy Riot.) If this offends please leave now.

No one knows. They are a collective of middle-class young women. They are 'kind' revolutionaries. They are a phenomena. They are few, but they are many.

In a country that feminism seemed to miss, the not so quiet women's revolution rages on. Western women can say or sing whatever they please without having to hide behind nicknames and masks, but in Russia feminism has to shield her face from the government. Pussy Riot has become the face of modern feminism in Russia today. Six young women (some with small children).

Pussy Riot’s crime was to enter the Moscow's Christ the Saviour cathedral back in February 2012, hop over a barrier and on to the altar where they sang a punk song (in Sex Pistol fashion), and then were ejected from the building by security. About 2 minutes in total.

When the police arrive they decided no crime had been committed. It was later, when their exploit was seen on YouTube by a high-up of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's people, that the Russian government decided a crime had been committed. They, themselves, admit the stunt was meant to be disrespectful, but that they were only guilty of an "ethical misdemeanour" at best.

Read the Guardian's excellent interview Yesterday (29/07/12).

Three of their number were taken into custody and interrogated, and have been held (over four months) without bail ever since. There trial is being broadcast over the internet (if it doesn’t loose the feed when they begin to be controversial) from today (30/07/12). Putin’s government are trying to give the impression that it is an ‘open’ trial. But nothing is quite as it seems in Russia.

The three members of Pussy Riot that are in custody have been declared Prisoners of conscience by Amnesty International. And more than 200 publically-renown Russians and 41,000 of the masses have signed an open letter of condemnation against the governments’ criminal action. Only the orthodox church wants them punished to the letter of the law and by God’s justice.

For a westerner with the ability to call our own government a bust of useless, incompetent morons. The song which Pussy Riot sung on the altar of the cathedral is quite inoffensive (calling on the Virgin Mary to push Putin out!) and I’m rather incredulous that Putin couldn’t just laugh it off as a childish stunt (as a spokesmen for the British government probably would have).

There has been more outrage for the treatment of these three young women, than for their alleged ‘crime’. As someone who remembers the furore that the Sex Pistols caused in ’77, when they released their infamous “God Save the Queen” anthem for her 25th Jubilee celebration (which also seems naively innocent at side of what is said over facebook or twitter about celebrities, politicians and the royals everyday).

As an old Punk and Anarchist myself, I wish the collective Pussy Riot a lot of luck and call for a little ‘passionate’ protesting in this country along the same lines. It sees to this degenerate, that the youth of the west could learn a few things from these warrioresses of the word.

That’s my opinion, for what it’s worth.

Watch the video (above) of Pussy Riot's 'cathedral' demonstration and decide for yourself.

What’s your opinion?

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Pussy Riot update 17 August 2012