Culture
Exhibit Honors Caricatures of Russian President
A new art exhibit in St. Petersburg features caricatures of recently elected president Dmitri Medvedev, playing off his name’s similarity to the Russian word for bear.
Mar 27, 2008 | Continued
Academics Protest Closure of European University at St. Petersburg
A group of prominent Russian academics have written an open letter in support of the University, which has been closed for a month for what many believe to be political reasons.
Mar 11, 2008 | Continued
Pranksters Slander Kommersant Newspaper
Unknown pranksters have changed all the toilet paper in Russia’s lower house of Parliament with rolls that bear the logo of the Kommersant newspaper. Analysts see it as a provocation, and believe that the pro-Kremlin Nashi youth group may be responsible.
Mar 7, 2008 | Continued
Voters Lured With Pies and Cheerleaders in St. Petersburg
The administration of the Petrovsky Municipal District in St. Petersburg has hatched a plan to bring voters to Sunday’s presidential election.
Feb 27, 2008 | Continued
Hate Killings Shake Moscow’s Ethnic Communities
Ethnic communities in Moscow are nearing a state of crisis after a recent wave of attacks on dark-skinned people. The city has seen six fatal attacks in the past week.
Feb 22, 2008 | Continued
Mandatory Military Service for Young Russian Clergy
A new ordinance requires Russia’s religious leaders to serve in the military.
Feb 19, 2008 | Continued
Kasparov Sues Nashi Youth Movement
On Friday, Garry Kasparov filed a civil suit against the Nashi pro-Kremlin youth group. Some of the group’s literature had described him as “a citizen of the United States,” and said that the goals of the Russian opposition were “to ransack Russia’s national wealth for the interests of the USA.”
Feb 16, 2008 | Continued
Russian Region Discovers “Emo” Subculture
The Department of Education of the Nizhny-Novgorod oblast has started a campaign to combat the “emo” subculture, which they claim leads to teen suicide.
Feb 13, 2008 | Continued
Russian NGO to Monitor US Democracy
A new think-tank aimed at improving Russia’s image abroad and tracking human rights is set to open in New York and Paris. In the words of its founder, the organization will “study the Western socio-political system and offer recommendations for its improvement.”
Jan 26, 2008 | Continued
A Civic and Patriotic Youth
New textbooks slated for Russian classrooms are based on the controversial “Books For Teachers,” written by Aleksandr Filippov. The author has been criticized for white-washing Soviet-era repressions, and writing what amounts to propaganda about the Putin administration.
Dec 27, 2007 | Continued