Evening Medusa

We tell the ten -year story of Pussy Riot. We speak with the natives of Chechnya, whose relatives fell under new repressions. We discuss the Soviet New Year canon

Good evening,

This message (material) was created and (or) widespread by a foreign media that performs the functions of a foreign agent, and (or) a Russian legal entity that performs the functions of a foreign agent

This is the daily newsletter "Medusa" about the main news of the day. Today I want to start no less than the New Year's miracle. Remember how, at the press conference of Vladimir Putin, a journalist from Yoshkar-Ola Anastasia Petrova told the president that she could not leave the city by train anywhere except Moscow? “I would very much like ... you could leave for Nizhny Novgorod, Samara, Vladimir,” the journalist said. Well, in general, you probably guessed what happened next .

Subscribe to our newsletter and share a link in social networks or messenger.

Pulse

The main thing is in the day - by points

• The court abolished the arrest of video blogger Yuri Khovansky. The preventive measure was replaced by the ban on certain actions.
• The Moscow City Court eliminated the Memorial human rights center (declared in Russia the “Ino -Agent”).
• Putin fired the deputy director of the FSIN Anatoly Yakunin. A month ago, the director of the department lost his position.
• The father of Ivan Zhdanov was sent to the pre -trial detention center for violating the unsuccessful subscription. 10 days ago he was sentenced to three years and was released in the courtroom.
• NETFLIX will be obliged from March 2022 to broadcast 20 Russian television channels due to making audiovisual services in the register.
• The governor of the Penza region paid the vice-governor a prize for refusing a bribe.
• The writer Evgeny Grishkovets headed the Public Council at the FSIN.
• Kazakhstan canceled the death penalty .

The texts of the day

The big text about the history of Pussy Riot is a group that the Russian authorities are trying to stop all ten years of existence

In 2021, Pussy Riot was ten years old. All this time, the Russian authorities (and sympathizing with them) are trying in every possible way to stop its participants. After the Punk-Molebna in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, the girls in the balaclavs received the famous “two-legged”. After the action at the final of the World Cup-then Pussy Riot ran out onto the field in police uniforms-the participants were arrested, and Peter Verzilov* soon someone tried to kill. In the past two years, the arrests and criminal prosecution of the group have become a routine at all; Right now, in the special cost there are Maria Alekhina and Lucy Stein - they are holding a hunger strike. The Special Corps of Medusa Kristina Safonova tells who Pussy Riot was in 2011-and who they became in 2021 .

* Declared in Russia the media - "ino -agent."

Relatives of Chechen opposition are abducted again - now not only in Chechnya itself, but also in other regions

At the end of December, at least six Chechens reported the disappearance of their relatives. Among them there are opposition bloggers, human rights activists and former militants, but all unites all - they live outside Chechnya and criticize Ramzan Kadyrov and his associates for violations of human rights. Some of them had received threats before and even survived attempts to kill. Their relatives, who remained in Chechnya, were also subjected to pressure, but now the relatives of the opposition are massively abducted - not only in Chechnya itself, but also in other regions of Russia. Some of them have already been released, the fate of others is still unknown. Journalist Vladimir Sevrinovsky at the request of Medusa talked with three people from Chechnya , whose relatives fell under a new wave of repression.

That it was impossible to miss in 2021: books, films, albums and series

The queue to summarize the year has reached the full -time critics of Medusa. Galina Yuzefovich, Alexander Filimonov, Anton Dolin, Yegor Moskvitin talk about the main impressions of the year . You will definitely have something to listen to, read and look at the holidays.

What happened to people (and one lion), about which Medusa wrote in 2021

On the eve of the January holidays, according to tradition, we briefly talk about what happened in the life of the heroes that we wrote about during the year. Unfortunately, the 2021st turned out to be a very difficult year and failed us, our Happy ends had almost no stories. Well, at least the Lev Simba, who was saved from captivity in Dagestan and sent to Africa, life seems to be getting better.

Podkast "What happened"

We are talking with the writer Alexander Genis about the Soviet New Year canon with the Olivier Salad and the cold. How did these traditions develop and why are they so tenacious?

In the penultimate release of the subcase “What happened” this year, writer Alexander Genis discusses the history and anthropology of the New Year holidays. As well as about festive salads, combinations of alcohol and food (sometimes rather wild) and the durability of traditions that have developed in the USSR. Well, in general: how did the New Year become the main holiday of the country? And why was the taste of mayonnaise for Soviet people the taste of a chic (!) Western (!!) life?

Listen “What happened” on “Medusa” and in Yetube , as well as subscribe to Apple Podcasts , Google Podcasts , CastBox , Yandex.Musiki and other podcast services.

Santa Claus of the day

The agenda has recently such that even news about a fabulous old man comes from the court. Remember the lawyer who sued Santa Claus? Putin was still reported about him. So: this lawyer was sued - already for insulting the feelings of believers in a fairy -tale character. And this is not the end of the absurd chain of events .

Eh, if there were no ships in cities and villages ... Your "Medusa"