Does the Punishment Fit the Crime? | Thoughts on Pussy Riot
A few days ago, three members of the Russian punk band Pussy Riot were sentenced to two years detention for what the presiding judge called “Hooliganism motivated by Religious Hatred.”
This stemmed from an incident in March, when Maria Alyokhina, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Yekaterina Samutsevich were arrested subsequent to staging a protest of Vladimir Putin in a Moscow cathedral. Footage of their protest was taken and included in a video by the band that is widely available on the net.
Pussy Riot Not the First Women’s Group to Cause a Stink
I recall back in the ‘90’s when Sinead O’Connor went on Saturday Night Live, and tore a photo of the pope in half at the end of her performance—on a live television show there was precious little that could have been done about it. People were outraged in both directions—some felt her actions weren’t enough, others felt she had effectively taken their faith and stomped upon it with muddy boots.
Was she disrespectful of Catholics? I think she was. In fact, I believe that was her point. But, did she threaten anyone? Did she physically harm anyone, or cause them to be unable to practice their faith in a safe environment? No. And, the same holds true for the women of Pussy Riot.
Pussy Riot, Politics, Religion and Punishment
Now, I’m not a religious person. In fact, I’m essentially an agnostic, though I do follow some Christian traditions—more because they are family traditions than because of a deep faith in a particular theology. If you watch the Pussy Riot video, certainly you will see disrespect—these women were making a point about the Orthodox Church and Putin being so inextricably intertwined as to negate any semblance of a separation of church and state, which are ostensibly (but not actually) separated in Russia. One could argue that effectively, there was no other way for them to so cogently and succinctly illustrate that point, and see to it that the message was heard in today’s media saturated environment.
For that disrespect (I cannot bring myself to call it a crime), these women have been sentenced to TWO years imprisonment. Two of them are mothers of young children—all of them bold women, speaking up against the powerful, patriarchal constructs that have been established for millennia. Making their political views heard. Sixty seconds of disrespect that yielded almost three THOUSAND pages of indictment.
They hurt no one, they defaced nothing. They were removed from the cathedral in less than 60 seconds. At no time was any attendee of the church injured, nothing was damaged. These women expressed themselves using the tools they were given, depending upon your beliefs, either by the grace of a higher being, or a fortuitous combination of DNA and evolution.
And now they are incarcerated simply for speaking their minds.
Are you familiar with the Pussy Riot situation? Do you feel the punishment fits the crime? And was this protest, in fact, a crime at all?
Sources:
Pussy Riot sentenced to two years in prison colony for hooliganism
Pussy Riot Sentenced To Two Years In Prison
Image: Wikimedia Commons from Sarah Stierch
Category: Feminism, Hot/Opinion
About the Author (Author Profile)
Margaret Barney is a 42 year old mom, writer, and the woman behind Just Margaret. Ordinarily shying away from incendiary topics like politics and religion, every now and then she feels compelled to write about them.Subscribe
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I’m torn on this story. I think there could have been a better venue for them to make their point, but I’m also aghast at the punishment for free speech. We take so much for granted in the U.S.
/jackie
I feel a bit torn myself–I can empathize with the faithful and the attendees of the cathedral that day. I imagine myself feeling a mixture of insult, and invasion and disrespect if I were among them. But at the same time, because of the message these women a bringing I can only applaud their courage and their willingness to speak out against injustice.
And I couldn’t agree more that we take so much for granted here…