Social Media Politicians, Fighting to be heard, Russian Navalny jailed with Thousands on the streets
How did the streets of Moscow get filled with people?
“If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what do not want to hear”
Saturday, via a tongue-in-cheek post on Instagram, Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, @navalny 3.9million followers, lead thousands to the streets. Upon return to Russia Navalny was arrested. Claiming he was poisoned in custody for a second time. Yet with the physical restrictions, his message has created a widespread movement.
Surprised they decided to leave him with his phone when trying to take his freedom? Todays most powerful tool when used with the leverage of followers. From his handset, Navalny and his team launched their attack. Motivating the people of Russia to stand in the cold, fighting to be heard, “Navalny free”.
Reports saying more than 7,000 people in Moscow coordinated with far-eastern city Vladivostok. Showcasing the scale of support, lines of his followers pleading with police in the -50.C snow of Siberia. Videos can be seen in reports from the guardian.
Photograph: Alexander Demianchuk/Tass
The support for Alexei Navalny is pushing back. Will it make the difference?
3,500 protesters and Yulia Navalnaya, Alexei’s husband (@yulia_navalnaya 0.9m) have been arrested. The Kremlin demonstrates its lack of compassion for expression. EU foreign Chef is flying to Moscow to condemn Navalny’s arrest. Is seems clear to anyone looking this is a mission from Putin to maintain control. Extending with the attempted poisoning in September, CNN reporters and Alexie state this was government-sanctioned attacks.
Today in the UK a candidate for Mayor of London was stopped by police and asked to return to his residence. Brain Rose @londonrealtv, a popular UK Youtuber has recently been outspoken with his views towards the UK government. With a following of over 2 Million. Now he his taking matters into his own hands. He has set about a mission to rally support and film a promotional video in the heart of London. This might not have been the best idea in the Lockdown.
Due to Covid restrictions changing on the day, his team was legally allowed to film for work. However, the police issued a fine to each of his team for £200 whilst telling them to “go to your place of residence”. This seems a few steps away from police enforcement creating a barrier for entry to politics. The average person has their right to their voice being heard.
So it seems in the age of lockdowns we have been asked to keep our political words to online chat rooms. Maybe this way is better. I might be wrong.