“Faces of the Russian Resistance” — a series of international exhibitions about Russians who took a stand against Putin’s regime and found themselves imprisoned as a result.

“Russians love Putin,” “most Russians support the war,” “Russians don’t protest”— are clichés often heard in various countries by people unfamiliar with the real situation in Russia. We are a team of municipal councillors and anti-war activists who left Russia and we present a project intended to shatter these stereotypes. Our mission is to share the stories of Russians who have fought for over 20 years for citizens’ rights, freedom of speech, and fair elections —and, naturally, against the war.

“Faces of the Russian Resistance” are not just the politicians who fought openly against Putin’s regime. They are also ordinary citizens who couldn’t accept the deceitful propaganda and the invasion of a neighbouring country. They are men and women, young and old, political activists, artists, scholars, students, fathers, and mothers. They were all thrown into prison, some for years, others for decades.

According to “Memorial”, there are 590 political prisoners in Russia, and we want to share their stories. Our aim, through city exhibitions, is to show to the global community the faces and destinies of Russians opposing Putin’s regime. Russians stand against the war, they protest, they post their opinions on social media, they distribute leaflets, they set draft offices ablaze, they create electoral competition, lead human rights organisations, conduct anti-corruption investigations, and organise anti-war activities. The world should be aware of this.

More about the project here.