I am Russian. And I am ashamed.

33 comments

1. I’ve lived in the UK for well over 10 years, am now British and have family and kids here. I honestly can’t put into words how much hate, anger, shame and disgust I feel towards the aggression and propaganda pedalled by the country that I used to call home.

2. Nothing to be ashamed of. You didnt choose where you were born, only the way you live your life

3. You are not Putin, you shouldn’t feel ashamed. People are not their government, especially when they have a de facto dictator. And they are good people everywhere, Russia included, they have not gone away, they have only been silenced. Be proud to be Russian and a decent human being, Putin can’t take that away from you.

4. Don’t be. You aren’t responsible for this.

5. >I realise that you might not understand or sympathise with me. But I wanted you to know that most Russians do not want war and we are also as shocked and terrified as the whole world

   Most right minded people in the West do sympathise with you. You don’t have free elections and didn’t vote for this. We understand that. The videos of Russian troops who are mostly conscript kids are tough to watch. The one sat on some stairs surrounded by Ukrainians telling him he wasn’t welcome there, crying he was just a kid who never wanted to be there. Heartbreaking. That is usually the nature of war – the kids and people suffer for the egos of old men. On the other hand though there is clearly a malign element in the military command that doesn’t value civilian life. The West are no angels in this regard but I’ve never seen so much evidence of war crimes on video as I have in the last 4 days.

   The pictures of the mass protests in Russia have not been lost on many of us. To protest in Russia takes bravery given the brutal nature of the regime. Massive respect to the Russians involved for that.

   Sanctions are the only weapon available to the West without kicking off WW3. The thought of that is terrifying but what’s more terrifying is that your leader seems to be in panic mode. For a man who hitherto has been seen as a cold calculating individual, he seems to be going crazy and can drag us all down with him. Only Russians can resolve this problem without the risk of nuclear war.

   It’s sad that sanctions are going to hit ordinary Russians. We expect hardships here too – energy prices were already up 400% before this kicked off and many people in the UK will not be able to afford heating taken together with massive increases in the costs of living. We know though that these travails are relative to what ordinary Russians will face.

   Our people are not enemies of one another. Our governments are. We have some really big challenges to face as a human race and this shouldn’t be one of them.

   Let’s hope there is a de escalation here, Putin goes and we can welcome a new Russia back into the international community as an equal and respected partner.

   Stay safe and strong.

6. Good for you. Solidarity.

7. I am curious, how much do people in Russia know about this invasion and how it’s going? I have zero clue what people there think, at all.

8. I don’t hold anything against normal Russians, its the monster in the Kremlin and his puppets I have beef with.

9. Don’t be ashamed of who you are or where you were born. Be proud to be Russian, a country with a colourful and magnificent cultural history. Be ashamed of the decision your leaders have made. Your countrymen can speak out and make a difference if you decide.

10. The Russian people are not the Russian government. No one blames the average person just trying to make it thru the day, but politicians who put us in this mess.

    And maybe ardent Putin supporters who do exists, they can fuck off.

11. It is harder to challenge these things, and/or to have any meaningful say under what is basically an autarchy. I’m neither Ukrainian nor Russian, but I’m glad you’re here, and I’m glad you’ve been speaking up where you can.

    As you correctly point out, the UK has dropped the ball getting so financially entangled with the same system. So while I do not think shame is an especially productive emotion, if shame is in play it should not fall solely on the shoulders of ordinary Russian people.

12. It’s not your fault. We all feel bad for the Russians who had zero choice in their despotic leader. We’re just as sorry for you as Ukraine. Hopefully Putin dies soon and some form of effective democracy can be installed.

13. Don’t be ashamed mate. We aren’t all fucking idiots. Nobody with any sense is blaming Russian people for Vlads insanity. We know Russians are very nice people. The problem is you have a paranoid megalomaniac with Nukes as your leader. Tell your friends and family to protest and save the world

14. Pull up a chair mate. Most countries have a repugnant shame to them. It’s just Russia’s turn at the moment. I remember feeling the same with Iraq.

    There is no reflection on this to the Russian people. I know my country, Europe in general, my teachers, my parents, friends all have a special admiration for the Russian people. It is all of our sincere hope that one day our nations can be open, peace restored and our cultures shared. And it will happen

15. I was living in Georgia in 2011 and I followed the events in Russia with great interest. I hoped that it was the end for Putin, but that was not to be. At times I have felt shame and embarrassment for the actions of the US government. No human is perfect and no government is perfect. Our duty as humans is to improve ourselves and to demand better from our governments. I am grateful to my friends abroad who saw me as a human being and not as a minion of my flawed government. I am encouraged by the protests of Russians such as yourself and many others in Russia. I am encouraged by the sympathy Ukarainians have demonstrated to captured Russian soldiers who really didn’t want to be in Ukraine. I firmly believe that people of good will around the world will recognize that individuals are more than just the countries they came from. Please keep speaking out on behalf of the unfortunate people in Ukraine and in Russia. პუტინი ხუილო!

16. By making this statement you’ve taken a stand against Putin. You don’t need to feel ashamed. You’re good.

17. We all bleed the same colour, we are all the same species. You are human, not Russian. The simple fact that you came on here and felt you needed to do this is more than enough to prove you are one of the better ones. We will outlive those fascists in the end. It will take time, but you are right here with us brother/sister. I’m proud to have you on the right side. thank you.

18. Don’t feel ashamed. I love the Russians I have met. As ever, it is the ruling class who are fault. This has never been proven better than 1914-1918.

19. Nothing to be ashamed of at all. It’s not your fault

20. We know it’s not normal Russian people behind this, it’s putin and his elite group of arselickers

21. I hope for your country somebody in the Kremlin or close to Putin is in the advanced stages of an assassination plan. His hold over your national identity is now malignant. I hope your authorities and armies start to question their orders.

    And I hope whatever comes next heals these wounds.

22. Unfortunately your president/ruler(whatever the fuck he is called) has ruined the name of Russian people on the world stage for a long time to come. I have zero problem for free thinking Russians who understand what’s being done here, which sounds like you. I’d buy you a vodka and drown some sorrows with you my friend.

23. There are ordinary Russians and there are Putinistas, or ,Putinites or whatever you want to call them. I’m pretty certain that the world knows that ordinary Russian citizens have no control and do not support Putin’s aggression.
    I am sure that most Ukrainians are also fully aware of your powerless position.
    Many captured Russian soldiers seem to have no support for Putin either.

24. You have nothing to be ashamed of mate.

    You have a kleptocrat who’s gone mad with power in control of your country. That’s not on you or the ordinary people of Russia. You are just as much a victim here as the people of Ukraine. The people who should be ashamed is Putin and his goons.

    You have nothing to apologize for

25. The people of Russia are victims too, anyone with a brain knows this. We know so many of you good people completely oppose the invasion. I have so much respect for the people in Russia protesting against it, that level of bravery is enormous.

    It’s heartbreaking, we’ll all normal people who just want to live together in peace. Corrupt power hungry leaders will be the death of us all.

26. Being British it’d be a bit hypocritical to hate you for the actions of your government. The only difference between us is that we have the good fortune of our empire being dead and enough time having passed to wash most of the blood from the new generation’s hands.

27. I think many of us can differentiate between the Russian people, and Putin. I would hope most of us can. Frankly I have been heartened by the number of Russian voices expressing their disgust at his behaviour. And I truly hope that this is a turning point for you, for Ukrainians, and for the rest of the world (well, with maybe a few obvious exceptions) that together we can make a difference. And that is very easy for me to say, sitting safely at home, warm and well fed. Bravo to the brave.

28. I’m a Russian living in the UK too. And I feel the same way…
    I stand for Ukraine.

29. No one in their right mind will hold anything against you, we all know this is Putins war.

30. There’s a plus side. I’ve yet to hear of any Russian counter protests like we saw Chinese counter protests around Hong Kong.

    You are not the Russian government; you didn’t start this war. And it seems not many, if any, Russians living abroad agree with the war either.

31. I’m sure I’m not alone hoping the tyrant/tyrants lose their grip on the Russian people sooner rather than later and they can live a better life than this.

32. We’re British: not very long ago, it was *our* government committing atrocities around the world in the name of the “glorious” British Empire. Those “expansions” (invasions) were not the will of the people, but the ruling elites craving more and more power and wealth on top of what they already had. And to justify themselves, they would label their victims as “uncivilised” or “savages” to claim that attacking them was somehow a *good* thing (sound familiar?).

    Any Brit who doesn’t sympathise with the Russian people is someone who has forgotten their own history. You have nothing to apologise for.

33. If you’re ashamed of Putin, I have to be ashamed of Johnson, and I refuse to take on any responsibility for someone who doesn’t care if I live or die.

    You didn’t choose your president, but you did choose to be the person you are.