are women (Crocker), groups like Pussy Riot and Feman are driving change by exposing the
sexism of Russia through performance art. They have been successful even if all they’ve been
able to do is show the West how much resistance stands in their way.
Tolokonnikova has made progress through performance art, but she also has taken direct action
through the lawsuits about the inhuman treatment of prisons. The Russian government treats
their prisoners very poorly. In fact, Russian prisons have been described as “Torture Prisons.”
People are subject to many forms of torture: They are beaten, electrocuted, and raped (Protester
at Russian). People in Russian prisons are forced to work extremely long hours. Tolokonnikova
has firsthand experience with this, as she was recently imprisoned for two years. She reported
working 17 hours a day, sleeping only 3-4 hours every night, eating rotten food, and watching
others subjected to humiliating punishment (Luhn). Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina,
another member of Pussy Riot, launched a non-governmental organization to protect the rights
of prisoners, called Zona Prava (Law Zone). They also established a hotline number for prisoners
or relatives of prisoners (Pelly). The hotline enables them to report incidents of abuse and seek
legal advice.
Tolokonnikova and Alyokhina began visiting prisons in other
countries to see how they are run. The activists were not surprised
to find the countries such as Norway and the United States have
much better prisons than their homeland.
Tolokonnikova and Alyokhina have continued to promote their
message through an international tour included stops in Asia and
Europe. They were recently in New York on their first visit to the
United States, where they were among the many celebrities
at an Amnesty International benefit concert (Gladstone).
They shared the stage with Madonna who has publicly
supported them many times (Farber). The purpose of the
concert was to raise awareness about prisoners of conscience,
peaceful people incarcerated or persecuted for their political
beliefs, race, gender, or sexual identity. Tolokonnikova and
Alyokhina were both declared prisoners of conscience by
Amnesty International. While in New York, the two women
also participated in an interview by the New York Times and
Tolokonnikova and other human rights activist in Russia face many challenges in the future:
They risk alienation from society, physical harm, legal prosecution, and even their lives to get
their message out to the world. The homophobic and sexist culture of Russia and its rigid
attitudes has made the lives of women and LGBTQ people very difficult, and Tolokonnikova
continues to fight even under the worst conditions. She has made a difference through
protests, lawsuits, and increasing international attention to her causes.