Ilya Yashin at UT-Austin: “Putin’s Social Contract is Broken”

On Monday, prominent Russian oppositionist Ilya Yashin spoke to a packed auditorium at the University of Texas at Austin about what he called the “political crisis” in Russia. With a slideshow of scenes of police brutality against Russian protesters as a backdrop, Yashin provided an eloquent primer on the dynamics of the country’s growing civil society and the repressive current regime. Originally scheduled to appear at the university in December, Yashin was forced to reschedule after being arrested in a protest against gross falsifications in the December 4, 2011 State Duma elections.

Yashin is also scheduled to speak at Columbia University’s Harriman Institute tonight, April 4 at 5:30 pm.

Watch the talk in full below (in Russian with English interpretation):