Pussy Riot: Russian ladies fight Putin with punk rock

Punk may be dead in America (what? It’s totally debatable), but in Russia punk rock is alive and well.

That’s right, anti-government protests are taking their music to the streets. Feminist punk group, Pussy Riot, recently decided to perform in Moscow’s Red Square singing songs mocking Prime Minister Putin.

Their latest performance took place in mid-January during a particularly sub-cold day in Moscow. The band, made up of eight young women dropped their coats, climbed a fence and started rocking out on top of a snow-covered platform that became their stage.

In bright, neon-colored summer dresses with face masks, the girls had to dance frantically just to stay warm enough to finish the song. Sure they got picked up by police and fined because their conduct was illegal, but hey, “illegal” is the point.

The band formed to protest government policies against women. There’s between 10-15 performers who video and sing in the group. All members use an alias and cover their faces. One member told NPR in an interview that they’ve been friends for years but only started performing together last summer. They say they are speaking out against Putin and current President Dmitry Mededev’s plan to change places after the next election, and new government legislation that added put additional restrictions on already legal abortions.

What could be more fem punk than that? Maybe this: According to band members, in Russia, “pussy” has a different connotation than in English. It is actually sometimes used as a term of endearment for girls. Yeah, well... you can keep that valentine, Comrade.