Russia’s most famous feminists: What Pussy Riot did next…

In a recent recording, Pussy Riot’s Nadezhda Tolokonnikova called Vladimir Putin a ‘dangerous dictator’ and ‘a sad, authoritarian leader who I would not want to be a leader of my country.’

As she detailed the latest project the controversial punk band and collective had been working on, Nadezha also spoke of being deeply ‘ashamed’ of Russia’s behaviour. 

Her comments come despite the fact that she – and several other members of Pussy Riot, the Russian group she co-founded – have previously been jailed for protesting against the government and its regime.

In the same video, Tolokonnikova gave her support for the people of Ukraine. 

‘Looking at bombed houess in Kyiv makes me heartbroken but it gives me so much inspiration as a human being to see that Ukrainians are fighting back,’ she said.

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‘Putin definitely was expecting that they would run away immediately, scared of a giant, Russian army, but even though the Ukrainian army is smaller they are fighting tirelessly and fearlessly.’

Tolokonnikova then went on to say that: ‘The world has to come together to stop him.’

According to Tolokonnikova, stopping Putin is something she has been working on since 2007. ‘I spent two years in jail for that,’ she said. ‘I’ve been attacked multiple times, I’ve been thrown chemical liquid in my face (sic), I’ve been whipped.’ 

The singer and activist has also recently been quoted as saying at a recent gig: ‘F*ck Putin, I hope he dies soon.’ 

In a recent recording, Pussy Riot’s Nadezhda Tolokonnikova called Vladimir Putin a ‘dangerous dictator’ (Picture: CGBG /AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL via Reuters)

But it’s not just words of condemnation and anger that are being offered by the punk collective. As part of a new organization, called Ukraine DAO, Pussy Riot are now also fundraising for Ukraine.

Tolokonnikova has accused the EU of not taking the Russian invasion seriously enough and so, has collaborated with several cryptocurrency groups by selling NFTs (‘non-fungible tokens’ – aka one-of-a-kind digital art, in all its forms, sold via the blockchain). 

In their first 24 hours, over $3million had been raised.

‘Our goal is to use what we’re good at, web3, to assist Ukrainians as they cope with the Russian invasion of their country,’ Pussy Riot tweeted of UkraineDAO. They bought an NFT of the Ukrainian flag – simple, yet powerful. 

In a statement, Tolokonnikova added, ‘We purposefully avoided adding our own art to this release, in a way it’s our strong conceptual artistic statement. People can have different aesthetics, but it’s not about what color we prefer, it’s about uniting to save lives. 

‘The Ukrainian flag unites us.’

Utilising NFTs to help victims of war is very much in line with the progressive and proactive thinking that has been the trademark of Pussy Riot, since they first burst onto the scene in 2011.

Back then, the punk band collective were said to be inspired by the ‘Riot grrrl’ guerrilla movement of the US Pacific Northwest of the 1990s – as reflected in the choice of their English name.

Punk collective Pussy Riot first came onto the scene in 2011 (Picture: Gary Miller/Getty Images)

‘From the get go, by calling themselves Pussy Riot, the collective was pushing the boundary of the ways in which polite society talked about women’s bodies,’ explains Professor Janet Johnson, Professor, Political Science & Women’s/Gender Studies, Brooklyn College, City University of New York. 

‘There were plenty of places where men would talk about women’s bodies, but they were claiming the right to use that language themselves.’ 

In the beginning, there were over a dozen members connected to the group. They began staging punk rock performances in public places – in the underground, on the roof of a prison, and in the Red Square in Moscow. 

They were bound together by feminism, anti-authoritarianism, opposition to Putin and the belief in the power of grass roots movements. 

But the group first gained real notoriety and international attention in 2012, when they took over Moscow’s Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, performing a song called Punk Prayer which attacked the Orthodox Church’s support for Putin.

It was staged just three weeks before the presidential elections in which Putin ran for a third term in power, and went on to win. 

Shortly after, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Maria Alyokhina, and Yekaterina Samutsevich, three of the five performers, were arrested and charged for hooliganism. 

(L-R) Yekaterina Samutsevich, Maria Alyokhina and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova sit behind bars during a court hearing in Moscow on July 20, 2012 (Picture: NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA/AFP/GettyImages)

Tolokonnikova and Alyokhina were later sentenced to two years’ in a hard labour camp.

The sentences imposed were described as ‘disproportionate’ by human rights groups across the world, and created a global media frenzy which sparked debate around issues of justice, feminism, and politics. 

Since then, the group has staged several high-profile protests, which resulted in further jail time. 

From being whipped by Cossachs at the 2014 Sochi Olympic games, to the 2018 pitch invasion at the World Cup final in Moscow, which saw them protesting for human rights including fair political competition in Russia and unfair fabrication of criminal cases and arrests at rallies, it’s fair to say that Pussy Riot know how to bring attention to a worthy cause. 

Just last year, four members of the group were jailed for ‘disobeying police orders’, while another was sentenced for minor hooliganism.

But have their actions really made any lasting impact? 

‘I think the movement has politicized women’s rights in Russia’, Professor Johnson says. 

‘When it comes to violence against women, there’s been a huge shift in public opinion and and I think that Pussy Riot has helped to create the space for that, and bring attention to the issue,’ she continues 

‘Especially in the spring of 2020, when they were very active and loud and the domestic violence we were seeing, with people stuck in their homes.’

However, Johnson explains that, at certain points, Pussy Riot’s activism has been so boundary pushing that some believed it did more harm than good. 

‘In the beginning, the way that they chose to protest was so radical compared not only to Russian society, but also in comparison to the existing feminist and women’s rights movements that existed in Russia,’ she says. 

‘Those before them had tried to play the game, and be a proper non-governmental organization that worked with the government, but also sometimes challenged the government. 

‘So, when they saw Pussy Riot weating balaclavas and making sexual innuendos about Putin, people thought they had gone too far.’ 

As Professor Johnson points out, over the years, Pussy Riot has produced some pretty controversial videos, to make political statements. 

‘For example, they might be playing at BDSM, or threatening violence against men as retribution for violence against women,’ she explains. ‘So even those of us who are progressive might see them as pushing boundaries.’ 

Activists support Pussy Riot after the band were jailed for performing in a Moscow church (Picture: LEX VAN LIESHOUT/AFP/GettyImages)

While some of the provocative nature of Pussy Riot’s activism may have been viewed as ‘too much’ by some, noisy stunts can prove a practical way of protesting in an oppressive country. 

‘When you have a repressive regime, you have to be creative about how you get attention,’ explains Johnson. ‘Being really radical around sexuality and violence is one way to do it.’ 

‘When you have a government that cuts people off and imprisons them, protesting in this way is something you can do really quickly, and then disappear or move on,’ she says. ‘It’s quick, easy and attention grabbing. People show up and then do something really quick and put it on the internet. 

‘And that’s different to the kind of protest we see in non-authoritarian regimes, where there’s less of a threat to safety and more time to hang around.’

Yet, despite increased activism, Professor Johnson points out that, since then, the Russian regime has grown more conservative, right wing, and more repressive. 

‘There’s been all these steps backwards,’ she says. 

‘But I don’t blame Pussy Riot for that. The regime was going that way already, with the eyes of illiberal populism and this anti-gender movement that argues that women’s rights and LGBTQ rights are somehow repressing those people who have conservative views.’

Over a decade on from when they first started making political waves, Masha Alekhina and Tolokonnikova in particular have international prominence.

While some applaud Pussy Riots’ activism, there’s a concern from others that it pushes boundaries too far (Picture: EVGENY FELDMAN/AFP via Getty Images)

‘They have both used their prestige and connections to raise attention to a wide variety of issues,’ says Johnson. ‘Whether it was domestic violence during COVID, or this recent activity raising funds for Ukraine.’ 

However, Tolokonnikova, and other members of Pussy Riot, have been forced to flee Russia, due to the continued threat of jail time and punishment from the state. 

Alekhina was arrested by Russian authorities just a matter of weeks ago, for the second time in two months, over a photo posted to Instagram in 2015 – it allegedly depicted the Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko surrounded by symbols that appear to be swastikas.

So, their activism is currently from afar. However, it may be that they have the power to do more from a distance – although that comes with its disadvantages too. 

‘When you have international prestige, you have more ability to network and draw attention to the issues, but you lose the connection on the ground,’ explains Professor Johnson. 

‘When you have a repressive regime, you have to be creative about how you get attention,’ explains Professor Johnson (Picture: Supplied)

‘That’s a risk but right now, we’re in the middle of a really acute crisis and the fact that these folks are internationally connected may protect them. 

‘It may give them a place to advocate more broadly and have more influence, without being in direct danger, because Russia is doing everything it can to shut down the conversations around what’s going on.’

‘Now, I’m hoping that Pussy Riot with their connections and relative safety, to the degree to which they’re outside of the country, will help create more space for the activists on the ground.

‘However, I’m worried about the feminists in Russia, who are making anti war statements, and who are being arrested. They risk severe punishment.’ 

Johnson adds that progressive movements like Pussy Riot  are incredibly important, as they have the power to bring attention to issues that might not be seen outside of Russia.

‘Pussy Riot has always pushed us to think differently, and to think innovatively and expansively about the space we can occupy for social movements; the movements that get us out on the streets, and maybe directly change policy. 

They have always thought outside the box and this performative, guerrilla activism of groups like these challenges all of our thinking.’

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And a decade on from their conception, it’s clear that Pussy Riot have created space for a new generation of grassroots feminist and LGBTQ activism in Russia. 

‘This new space is more performative,’ continues Professor Johson. ‘And it’s also connected to Ukrainian activism after the 2014 invasion of Ukraine, and the annexation of Crimea.

‘It’s driven by LGBTQ rights, and women’s rights or feminism – but the focus is more collective. 

‘I have no doubt that the next generation are right now trying to come up with as many ways as they can to poke the Russian bear.’

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