Pussy Riot’s Masha on Putin, democracy, and escaping Russia

2026-08-20

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In 2022, Masha Alyokhina escaped Russia disguised as a food delivery courier. She had spent years being arrested, imprisoned and watched by the state for her work with punk rock protest group Pussy Riot and for speaking out against Vladimir Putin. But Alyokhina says the Russia she fled wasn’t transformed by one dramatic moment. Repression came piece by piece, until fear, censorship and eventually silence became part of everyday life. Now, she says the same pattern is taking hold elsewhere, as people become overwhelmed, disengaged from p...

In 2022, Masha Alyokhina escaped Russia disguised as a food delivery courier.

She had spent years being arrested, imprisoned and watched by the state for her work with punk rock protest group Pussy Riot and for speaking out against Vladimir Putin.

But Alyokhina says the Russia she fled wasn’t transformed by one dramatic moment. Repression came piece by piece, until fear, censorship and eventually silence became part of everyday life.

Now, she says the same pattern is taking hold elsewhere, as people become overwhelmed, disengaged from politics, and complacent that the freedoms they inherited will simply endure.

Today, Pussy Riot’s Masha Alyokhina on what Putin’s Russia can teach us about authoritarianism, and why democracy can never be taken for granted.

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Guest: Pussy Riot’s Maria (Masha) Alyokhina

Photo: AAP Image/Kelly Barnes

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