What I came here to post:
Where Does the Fight for a Free Russia Go Now?
by Ellen Ioanes
February , 2024
Introduction:
Read more here: https://www.vox.com/24078537/yulia-nav ... i-navanly(Vox) Russian dissident Alexei Navalny’s widow, Yulia Navalnaya, announced Monday that she would take up her husband’s crusade against President Vladimir Putin following his death while in prison.
“I have no right to give up,” Navalnaya said in a video address Monday. “I will continue the work of Alexei Navalny. I will continue to fight for our country, and I urge you to stand next to me.”
Navalny campaigned against the Kremlin for more than a decade following widespread anger over Putin’s 2011 move to retake power. He was Putin’s most internationally known critic, and was the most recognizable to Russians, too, despite Putin’s refusal to say his name. In what amounts to an opposition in Russia, Navalny was essentially the only figure with broad name recognition.
Now, Navalnaya will take up that mantle, but it’s not clear how far the Navalnys’ fight for a free Russia can go under such brutal repression — and with its most charismatic leaders either dead or in exile.
Who is Yulia Navalnaya?
Because of her husband’s work, Navalnaya has been in the public eye for over a decade — not exactly as a political wife or first lady figure, but more as a quiet, stoic partner, although she was a critical part of Alexey’s political activism as his closest adviser. That was intentional on her part; she supported her husband’s activism but wanted to make sure their children were well-adjusted.
caltrek's comment: Part of me thinks allowing Navalny to die means that he is now a martyr and as a martyr is a far more effective threat to Putin's dictatorial ways. Just look at the attention his widow is now receiving. Another part thinks that I am being highly Polly-Annish in that regard. As the article points out, she no longer even resides in Russia.