The Russian Reader

Asylum Seekers The cases of Russian activist Yulia Yemelyanova, Ukrainian refugee Dmytro Kulyk, and Russian deserter Georgy Avaliani show that Kazakhstan, the U.S., and Germany are taking a similarly draconian approach to people trying to escape the Russian police state and Russia's genocidal war against Ukraine.

Asylum Seekers

The cases of Russian activist Yulia Yemelyanova, Ukrainian refugee Dmytro Kulyk, and Russian deserter Georgy Avaliani show that Kazakhstan, the U.S., and Germany are taking a similarly draconian approach to people trying to escape the Russian police state and Russia's genocidal war…

Jeffrey Epstein’s Petersburg Connections For the powerful Petersburgers behind St. Petersburg State University's Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences (aka Smolny College) and the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Jeffrey Epstein was a hail fellow well met, not a rapist and sex trafficker. Bumaga has rummaged in the Epstein files and dug up the details.

Jeffrey Epstein’s Petersburg Connections

For the powerful Petersburgers behind St. Petersburg State University's Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences (aka Smolny College) and the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Jeffrey Epstein was a hail fellow well met, not a rapist and sex…

Russian Deserters and Kenyan Job Seekers Who is more miserable? Russian soldiers who wound themselves to escape the slaughter on the front lines in Ukraine? Or economically desperate Kenyans who are mostly tricked into serving in the Russian army on those same front lines?

Russian Deserters and Kenyan Job Seekers

Who is more miserable? Russian soldiers who wound themselves to escape the slaughter on the front lines in Ukraine? Or economically desperate Kenyans who are mostly tricked into serving in the Russian army on those same front lines?

Blood Type Contemporary listeners of Kino's hit album Blood Type (1988) would have had no trouble identifying the war alluded to in the title track: the Soviet-Afghan War was still ongoing. The war was one of the causes of the Soviet Union's sudden collapse in 1991. Unless it is stopped in short order, the Trump regime's just-as-needless war against U.S. cities will lead to the collapse of the United States.

Blood Type

Contemporary listeners of Kino's hit album Blood Type (1988) would have had no trouble identifying the war alluded to in the title track: the Soviet-Afghan War was still ongoing. The war was one of the causes of the Soviet Union's sudden collapse in 1991. Unless it is stopped in short…

Cruel and Unusual While Russia's fascist regimes tries to bomb Ukrainians into surrender by blacking out their cities in the dead of winter, the U.S. fascist regime continues its terror campaign against immigrants, including children.

Cruel and Unusual

While Russia's fascist regimes tries to bomb Ukrainians into surrender by blacking out their cities in the dead of winter, the U.S. fascist regime continues its terror campaign against immigrants, including children.

2016 (Have a Heart) Since you didn't bother to do anything at all, much less to think to do anything, when it would have made a difference to do something, make it seem now as if there was never anything you could have done even had you wanted to do something. Which you absolutely didn't do, ever.

2016 (Have a Heart)

Since you didn't bother to do anything at all, much less to think to do anything, when it would have made a difference to do something, make it seem now as if there was never anything you could have done even had you wanted to do something. Which you absolutely didn't do, ever.

A Fundraiser for Yuri Dmitriev’s 70th Birthday Memorial France has launched a fundraiser to help the Russian historian, human rights activist and political prisoner Yuri Dmitriev and his family on his 70th birthday. Memorial has made its appeal in three languages: English, French and Russian. Please donate and share widely!

A Fundraiser for Yuri Dmitriev’s 70th Birthday

Memorial France has launched a fundraiser to help the Russian historian, human rights activist and political prisoner Yuri Dmitriev and his family on his 70th birthday. Memorial has made its appeal in three languages: English, French and Russian.…

The Russian Reader | Substack News and views of (other) Russia(n)(s). Click to read The Russian Reader, a Substack publication. Launched 8 minutes ago.

The Russian Reader
russianreader.substack.com?r=c0lo9&utm_...

Is 19-Year-Old Lyuba Lizunova a Terrorist? 19-year-old Lyuba Lizunova is already serving three and a half years in a Siberian penal colony for her antiwar and antifascist views. Now a Russian court has declared a leader of a "terrorist" organizer, meaning she could face another 20 years in prison if convicted.

Is 19-Year-Old Lyuba Lizunova a Terrorist?

19-year-old Lyuba Lizunova is already serving three and a half years in a Siberian penal colony for her antiwar and antifascist views. Now a Russian court has declared a leader of a "terrorist" organizer, meaning she could face another 20 years in prison…

Stand with Ukraine Through Darkness The Kyiv Independent: "As temperatures in Kyiv plunged to -20°C (-4°F), Russia intensified its attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure, leaving millions in total darkness and biting cold. Though Russia has tried this strategy before, this winter is different. The scale and relentlessness of these attacks have reached unprecedented levels. Many Ukrainians are now forced to survive winter without steady heat, without light, without the basic infrastructure that makes normal life possible." This post contains several eyewitness accounts by Kyivans of their ordeal + details of a fundraising campaign in support of Ukrainians this winter which also makes visible your support for them.

Stand with Ukraine Through Darkness

The Kyiv Independent: "As temperatures in Kyiv plunged to -20°C (-4°F), Russia intensified its attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure, leaving millions in total darkness and biting cold. Though Russia has tried this strategy before, this winter is…

Minnesota Now, the U.S. Then and Now Minnesota resident Erin Maye Quade on what life in her state is like under ICE's terror regime, and UCLA historian Robin Kelley on how events there fit the historical pattern of ultra-violent "policing" in the U.S.

Minnesota Now, the U.S. Then and Now

Minnesota resident Erin Maye Quade on what life in her state is like under ICE's terror regime, and UCLA historian Robin Kelley on how events there fit the historical pattern of ultra-violent "policing" in the U.S.

Persons of No Interest If you were a Soviet man in the mid-1970s would you start block-lettering (rather than writing in cursive) in a moment of extreme duress? Would you go to a "beer bar" called "The Shot Glass"? Wouldn't you go to a ryumochnaya (shot bar) instead? And wouldn't you be surprised if a primly attired thirty-something woman turned up there all by herself?

Persons of No Interest

If you were a Soviet man in the mid-1970s would you start block-lettering (rather than writing in cursive) in a moment of extreme duress? Would you go to a "beer bar" called "The Shot Glass"? Wouldn't you go to a ryumochnaya (shot bar) instead? And wouldn't you be surprised…

(Anti)Fascism Tuesday As ICE continues its relentless war on Minnesotans, who continue to stand up for each other, Jonathan Last asks how many self-identified U.S. Republicans consciously support the Trump regime's fascist race war, and Congresswoman Robin Kelly (D-Illinois) files articles of impeachment against U.S. Homeland Security head Kristi Noem.

(Anti)Fascism Tuesday

As ICE continues its relentless war on Minnesotans, who continue to stand up for each other, Jonathan Last asks how many self-identified U.S. Republicans consciously support the Trump regime's fascist race war, and Congresswoman Robin Kelly (D-Illinois) files articles of…

(Anti)Fascism Today Descriptions of current and historical (anti)fascisms by Minneapolis legal observer Brandon Siguenza, News from Ukraine Bulletin, Heather Cox Richardson, and the U.S. War Department.

(Anti)Fascism Today

Descriptions of current and historical (anti)fascisms by Minneapolis legal observer Brandon Siguenza, News from Ukraine Bulletin, Heather Cox Richardson, and the U.S. War Department.

Comply or Die “Comply or die” has always been my country’s operative motto, especially when “compliance” has been a priori impossible.

Comply or Die

“Comply or die” has always been my country’s operative motto, especially when “compliance” has been a priori impossible.

Alexander Krichevsky of Izhevsk: Six Years in Prison for a Comment By all rights, Russian Reader No. 2765 should be about yesterday's events — the Trump regime's vicious murder of an innocent woman in my home state of Minnesota. Instead, it's about a little-known Russian antiwar protester, Alexander Krichevsky, who faces six years in prison for a comment posted on someone else's Telegram channel. Here's the thing, though. The Trump regime, only a year into office, is trying to outdo the nearly 27-year-old Putin regime in its viciousness and corruption and lawlessness, and so unless something is changed quickly, the U.S. will soon have its own crowd of Alexander Krichevskys behind bars for thought crimes. But don't let that stop you from reading Mr. Krichevsky's story and showing your solidarity with him and other Russian political prisoners. We are fighting the same enemy, as he argued in the social media comment that got him sent to jail.

Alexander Krichevsky of Izhevsk: Six Years in Prison for a Comment

By all rights, Russian Reader No. 2765 should be about yesterday's events — the Trump regime's vicious murder of an innocent woman in my home state of Minnesota. Instead, it's about a little-known Russian antiwar protester,…

Timofey Anufriev Dies Fighting for Ukraine Timofey Anufriev was the 22-year-old son of the legendary conceptual artist Sergei Anufriev, whom I had the pleasure of meeting many years ago in a different life. Today, the news came that Timofey had been killed on the front while fighting for Ukraine as part of the Russian Volunteer Corps. This memorial post contains a short film about Timofey that Russian news and investigative reporting website The Insider made in Kyiv in February 2025.

Timofey Anufriev Dies Fighting for Ukraine

Timofey Anufriev was the 22-year-old son of the legendary conceptual artist Sergei Anufriev, whom I had the pleasure of meeting many years ago in a different life. Today, the news came that Timofey had been killed on the front while fighting for Ukraine…

The Story of Gordey Nikitin Russian Reader No. 2763 (the 120th and final dispatch of 2025) conveys what little is known about Russian political prisoner Gordey Nikitin, recently convicted of "high treason" for several antiwar comments on social media and sentenced to 17 years in a maximum security prison. We know this much only because former Russian political prisoner and political exile Ivan Astashin learned about his case and wrote to him in remand prison. Happy new year!

The Story of Gordey Nikitin

Russian Reader No. 2763 (the 120th and final dispatch of 2025) conveys what little is known about Russian political prisoner Gordey Nikitin, recently convicted of "high treason" for several antiwar comments on social media and sentenced to 17 years in a maximum security…

Wine, Hot Tubs and Skating Rinks: Three Russian(esque) Stories from California A little provincialism and chicanery go a long way: "If all 270 million Soviets and all 230 million Americans could sit together in a hot tub, the world would be in better shape."

Wine, Hot Tubs and Skating Rinks: Three Russian(esque) Stories from California

A little provincialism and chicanery go a long way: "If all 270 million Soviets and all 230 million Americans could sit together in a hot tub, the world would be in better shape."

Map References This special holiday blog, featuring several versions of Wire's evergreen classic "Map Ref. 41°N 93°W," is dedicated to my old 1990s Russia comrade L.J., who lives a mere seventy or so miles from the map reference in question and once upon a (better) time invited me to screen the world's greatest mockumentary, First on the Moon, at the fab Mars Cafe in Des Moines.

Map References

This special holiday blog, featuring several versions of Wire's evergreen classic "Map Ref. 41°N 93°W," is dedicated to my old 1990s Russia comrade L.J., who lives a mere seventy or so miles from the map reference in question and once upon a (better) time invited me to screen the…

Free Daria Egereva! Daria Egereva is a Selkup activist and co-chair of the International Indigenous Peoples Forum on Climate Change (IIPFCC). On December 17, Russian security forces raided her home and the homes of 17 other Russian Indigenous leaders. Egereva was accused of "involvement in a terrorist organization" and remanded in custody for 2 months. Her fellow Russian Indigenous leader Valentina Sovkina and the IIPFCC are among those demanding her Egereva's immediate release.

Free Daria Egereva!

Daria Egereva is a Selkup activist and co-chair of the International Indigenous Peoples Forum on Climate Change (IIPFCC). On December 17, Russian security forces raided her home and the homes of 17 other Russian Indigenous leaders. Egereva was accused of "involvement in a…

“Try Me for Treason”: Londoners Stand in Solidarity with Imprisoned Opponents of Russia’s War in Ukraine If you missed the November London launch of "Voices Against Putin’s War," which featured readings of the court speeches made by four convicted antiwar protesters, you can watch a video of it here, as well as find out about another such upcoming event in London in February. But the best thing you can is buy and/or download our book and read it.

“Try Me for Treason”: Londoners Stand in Solidarity with Imprisoned Opponents of Russia’s War in Ukraine

If you missed the November London launch of "Voices Against Putin’s War," which featured readings of the court speeches made by four convicted antiwar protesters, you can watch a video of it…

Russia Is Not a Land of Opportunity for Central Asians A 10-year-old boy from a Tajik family was stabbed to death by a neo-Nazi Russian teenager on December 16 at a school near Moscow, but the murder has prompted almost no sympathy or even comment among Russians at home or abroad. Meanwhile, BBC News Russian details the worsening plight of Central Asian migrant workers in Russia.

Russia Is Not a Land of Opportunity for Central Asians

A 10-year-old boy from a Tajik family was stabbed to death by a neo-Nazi Russian teenager on December 16 at a school near Moscow, but the murder has prompted almost no sympathy or even comment among Russians at home or abroad. Meanwhile, BBC…

Delete All the Messages on Your Phone Before Going to Russia: The Treason Case Against Mikhail Loshchinin

The terrifying story of Mikhail Loshchinin, a Belgian-Russian dual national who went to Russia to visit his ailing father but was detained at the border. He now faces charges of "high treason"…

A Documentary Film about Pavel Kushnir Filmmaker Sergey Erzhenkov has memorialized the late pianist, writer and antifascist Pavel Kushnir, who died in a Russian detention center in 2024. Erzhenkov's compelling film "Kushnir" features the pianist's friends and admirers, and it also has English subtitles, making it accessible to international audiences. I've posted it here along with a translation of Erzhenkov's Facebook ntro to his film and a 2024 BBC podcast about Kushnir.

A Documentary Film about Pavel Kushnir

Filmmaker Sergey Erzhenkov has memorialized the late pianist, writer and antifascist Pavel Kushnir, who died in a Russian detention center in 2024. Erzhenkov's compelling film "Kushnir" features the pianist's friends and admirers, and it also has English…

The Russian Opposition in Exile The Russian opposition and antiwar movement in exile is in disarray again after Garry Kasparov and Vladimir Kara-Murza have a mighty row over which members of this non-elected group are worthy of representing "Russian democratic forces" at the Council of Europe in Strasbourg.

The Russian Opposition in Exile

The Russian opposition and antiwar movement in exile is in disarray again after Garry Kasparov and Vladimir Kara-Murza have a mighty row over which members of this non-elected group are worthy of representing "Russian democratic forces" at the Council of Europe in…

Social Parasites "Social parasitism" was a criminal offense in the USSR from 1961 to 1991. People who were unemployed without a valid reason could be sentenced to corrective labor, exile, or imprisonment. Citizens engaged in shadow private business were often prosecuted on this charge. The poet Joseph Brodsky was also convicted of "social parasitism."

Social Parasites

"Social parasitism" was a criminal offense in the USSR from 1961 to 1991. People who were unemployed without a valid reason could be sentenced to corrective labor, exile, or imprisonment. Citizens engaged in shadow private business were often prosecuted on this charge. The poet…

Trans(national) Solidarity Since trans and LBTQ rights are under attack from Astana to Missouri, the defense of these rights is a transnational cause, as witnessed by these dispatches from the front lines by Yara Tychina, Peter Leonard, BBC Russian Service, Erin Reed, and Paisley Currah.

Trans(national) Solidarity

Since trans and LBTQ rights are under attack from Astana to Missouri, the defense of these rights is a transnational cause, as witnessed by these dispatches from the front lines by Yara Tychina, Peter Leonard, BBC Russian Service, Erin Reed, and Paisley Currah.

Give Them Want They Want They want it all, but they can't have it. Or can they? Two reflections on (certain) Russians always getting what they want.

Give Them Want They Want

They want it all, but they can't have it. Or can they? Two reflections on (certain) Russians always getting what they want.

The Intensifying Crackdown in Russia As Russia's brutal invasion of Ukraine heads to the four-year mark with no signs of ever ending, Russia's crackdown against dissenters has expanded, as exemplified by the cases of Varvara Volkova, Felix Eliseev, Ilya Shakursky, OVD Info, and Yulia Lemeshchenko.

The Intensifying Crackdown in Russia

As Russia's brutal invasion of Ukraine heads to the four-year mark with no signs of ever ending, Russia's crackdown against dissenters has expanded, as exemplified by the cases of Varvara Volkova, Felix Eliseev, Ilya Shakursky, OVD Info, and Yulia Lemeshchenko.