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Is sextremism the new feminism? Perspectives from Pussy Riot and Femen

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 November 2018

Emily Channell
Emily Channell*
Affiliation:
Anthropology, The Graduate Center, City University of New York, USA
*
∗Email: echannell@gc.cuny.edu
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Abstract

As Pussy Riot has changed the face of political protest in Russia, to the south, Ukraine has seen the emergence of Femen, famous for their topless protests against everything from sex tourism and trafficking to hot water shut-offs in Kyiv to sexism in the Ukrainian government to Putin's visits to Ukraine. Their concurrent appearance in the post-Soviet sphere encourages a discussion around the mobilization of sexuality as protest in the region. Both groups appropriate sexual language and imagery as well as physical sexuality in protest of their current regimes. This article engages the question of similarities between the two groups' efforts and considers what differences structure their political goals and philosophies. What potential does the global visibility of these groups have to influence an emerging women's movement, and, more generally, how can sexuality be harnessed as a unifying force in anti-government activism in post-socialist Russia and Ukraine?

Keywords

feminismglobal activismpost-socialismUkraineRussia
Type
Special Section: Pussy Riot
Information
Nationalities Papers , Volume 42 , Issue 4 , July 2014 , pp. 611 - 614
Copyright
Copyright © 2014 Association for the Study of Nationalities 

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