12 August 2012

Maxiumum Hooliganism

"We were looking for authentic genuineness and simplicity and we found them in our punk performances. Passion, openness and naivety are superior to hypocrisy, cunning and a contrived decency that conceals crimes. The state’s leaders stand with saintly expressions in church, but their sins are far greater than ours. We’ve put on our political punk concerts because the Russian state system is dominated by rigidity, closedness and caste. Аnd the policies pursued serve only narrow corporate interests to the extent that even the air of Russia makes us ill."

-Nadezdha Tolokonnikova, excerpt from her closing statement at the Pussy Riot trial in Moscow

Tolokonnikova is part of the Russian feminist punk band/collective, Pussy Riot. They are facing jail time for a protest performance at a cathedral in Moscow. You can read more about the case here. Read some very thoughtful, spot on, and courageous closing statements in full (and translated into English) here and here.
The world they describe (and are actively fighting against) is not exclusive to just Russia. I think the above quote can describe many facets of Western societies' selective application of morality as well.