Hopefully by now you’ve heard about the plight of Russian punk rock band Pussy Riot.
The girl punk band was sentenced to two years of hard labor by Russian officials for staging a protest concert at a Russian Orthodox Church. The performance defended women’s rights and decried Vladimir Putin’s strongman hold on the country.
By levying a draconian punishment, the Russian government (and Putin) martyred Pussy Riot.
Instead of silence, Pussy Riot has transformed from a relatively unknown group of women activists into global music icons and possibly the decade’s pop icon for feminism.
The resulting global protests have captured the media’s attention. Further, Pussy Riot wonthe political support of an increasingly silent music community.
No matter what happens now, Pussy Riot will be celebrated upon their release. The band will be welcomed by millions of fans globally who will pay good money to see them, buy their records and merchandise, and support them in their fight against Russian totalitarian governance.
Pussy Riot will make millions in 2014 (if not sooner via merchandizing).
From a political standpoint, what was an enforcement tactic straight out of the Art of War has instead become an international embarrassment.
We discuss control and messaging frequently in communications, and in particular in social media. As we can see here, when someone has access to media tools, both owned and earned, a controlling action can be reported, and turned into an empowering moment.
It never pays to try to control people’s online and media expression. We’ve seen this over and over again, and increasingly in developing and autocratic countries. Word gets out.
Will Pussy Riot cause more than embarrassment for Putin? It’s unlikely this incident will have more direct impact other than international political pressure. Russia seems to move between autocratic regimes.
However, the imprisonment has enraged Russia’s usually subdued media and could cause the beginning of the long movement towards an improvement in women’s rights and free speech. Change often begins with iconic moments in time.
In either case, when Pussy Riot’s hardship is over, they will find a receptive paying audience outside of the motherland.
What do you think of the Pussy Riot story?