February 29, 2024

"Small" Acts of Protest Keep Anti-War Effort Alive


"Small" Acts of Protest Keep Anti-War Effort Alive
An example of subtle protest art integrated into everyday Russian life.  NoWobble.net.

Russian protestors and artists against the war in Ukraine are going to great lengths to express their dissent while avoiding being prosecuted for their views. A collection of anonymous works is now available online.

Last year, artist Alexandra Arkhipova began collecting instances of "small" protests: graffiti on city streets, stickers left on supermarket shelves, action figures carrying tiny signs photographed on playgrounds. These pictures can be found on her website "Nyet Voblye" or "No Wobble," (or literally “No Dried Fish”) play on the widespread slogan "No to War." Along with the pictures, she has assembled the stories of protestors who hope to keep making their voices heard. One such story is of a St. Petersburg citizen who places dolls around the city at night, hoping they will be found by children the next day, who will bring them home without noticing the yellow and blue ribbons in their hair. Others paste stickers on lampposts with lines of protest poetry by Osip Mandelstam or Bulat Okudzhava

Arkhipova hopes that passersby will notice the small acts of protest and know that they have "invisible allies."

The legal consequences of being discovered by the authorities are real: Since the beginning of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in March 2022, over 8,055 charges of "discrediting" the army have been filed in local courts, and in the first six months of 2023 alone, 21 people were convicted of "disseminating false information" about the war. 

You Might Also Like

Navalny Launches Antiwar Campaign
  • June 21, 2023

Navalny Launches Antiwar Campaign

Politician and political prisoner Alexei Navaly is launching a "big propaganda machine" to counter Putin and pro-war propaganda.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of our Books

Murder at the Dacha
July 01, 2013

Murder at the Dacha

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin has a problem. Several, actually. Not the least of them is the fact that a powerful Soviet boss has been murdered, and Matyushkin's surly commander has given him an unreasonably short time frame to close the case.

How Russia Got That Way
September 20, 2025

How Russia Got That Way

A fast-paced crash course in Russian history, from Norsemen to Navalny, that explores the ways the Kremlin uses history to achieve its ends.

The Latchkey Murders
July 01, 2015

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...

Marooned in Moscow
May 01, 2011

Marooned in Moscow

This gripping autobiography plays out against the backdrop of Russia's bloody Civil War, and was one of the first Western eyewitness accounts of life in post-revolutionary Russia. Marooned in Moscow provides a fascinating account of one woman's entry into war-torn Russia in early 1920, first-person impressions of many in the top Soviet leadership, and accounts of the author's increasingly dangerous work as a journalist and spy, to say nothing of her work on behalf of prisoners, her two arrests, and her eventual ten-month-long imprisonment, including in the infamous Lubyanka prison. It is a veritable encyclopedia of life in Russia in the early 1920s.

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka
November 01, 2012

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.

Fearful Majesty
July 01, 2014

Fearful Majesty

This acclaimed biography of one of Russia’s most important and tyrannical rulers is not only a rich, readable biography, it is also surprisingly timely, revealing how many of the issues Russia faces today have their roots in Ivan’s reign.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955