Pussy Riot Rushes the Field at the World Cup
Russian punk rock group Pussy Riot took their political activism to the World Cup in Moscow today. The group claimed responsibility for organizing four invaders to run onto the field, disrupting the final match, which saw France taking on Croatia. The protestors, who marched onto the field dressed in faux police uniforms in the first hour of the game, were quickly escorted off the field by security.
Pussy Riot, a group of balaclava-clad women, first rose to global prominence for their criticism of Russian President Vladminir Putin in 2012. (Two members were sent to prison for almost two years.) This latest stunt—titled “Policeman Enters the Game”—took aim at police brutality, according to the group’s Twitter page, where they released a statement.
“The FIFA World Cup has reminded us of the possibilities of the heavenly policeman in the Great Russia of the future, but the earthly policeman, entering the ruleless game breaks our world apart,” the release read. Among other things, their act of protest aimed to release political prisoners, stop illegal arrests, and “not fabricate criminal accusations and not keep people in jails for no reason.”
For more from the statement, see below.
