Oh my. The Guardian has reported that seven peaceful protesters were arrested recently outside of the Russian consulate in Marseilles, France. There to show support for the three members of feminist punk group Pussy Riot, who were convicted and sentenced last week to two years behind bars for playing an anti-Putin song in a Russian church, some members of the 30-person protest sported balaclavas, the knitwear that covers your whole face, with cutouts for your eyes, mouth, and nose. Although the protesters were merely standing behind a sign professing the power of poetry (similar to the healing power of laughter?), the fact that they were covering their faces gave the police the right to arrest and question them.
In order to not come off as totally racist, Sarkozy’s 2011 law banning the wearing of the niqab by Muslim women was amended to ban all covering of one’s face in public spaces. Still seems pretty racist, but this action against the protesters wearing balaclavas demonstrates the state’s willingness to apply the law to circumstances that don’t have anything to do with religion.
One protester at the rally was quoted as saying, “We came here to defend freedom of expression in Russia and we find ourselves stopped by French police.” Needless to say, those at the rally found the whole ordeal to be rather ridiculous, especially given the cause that they were there to support. If the members of Pussy Riot were to hear about this, I’m sure they’d just shake their heads and laugh as they did upon hearing their guilty verdict last week.
Meanwhile, the hunt for more Pussy Riot members is on.
• Free Pussy Riot: http://freepussyriot.org
