The imprisonment of two members of the Russian punk band, Pussy Riot, for a 40 second protest song in a Church, has astonished and outraged people around the world. A travesty of justice, an absurd and unjust trial and a verdict clearly handed down from the highest levels of the state has cast a shadow over the Putin regime. The fact that the leader of the world's second super power fears an artistic, protest group of 15 young girls is a frightening thought. It has revealed the dysfunctional nature of the Russian state and the inherent instability of the system. The attack on Pussy Riot is an attack on democratic rights, on women, on youth, on the LGBT community and the whole Opposition movement in Russia. It is an attempt to bully and frighten people into silence, so that resistance will be broken to Putin's moves back towards a more authoritarian regime . This book wants to help set the record straight against the avalanche of lies and slanders aimed at Pussy Riot. It deals with the band's performances, the action at the Cathedral, their arrest and trial.

It also explains their influences, aims and political opinions and what they have said in their own defense, in their own words.Pussy Riot proudly proclaim themselves to be the heirs to the struggles of the great writers like Dostoyevsky and Tolstoy, who fought Tzarist autocracy. They trace their roots to the Futurists who fought for revolution, the OBEIRU poets who were persecuted by Stalin and writers like Solzhenitsyn and Brodsky, who spent years in gulags and psychiatric hospitals for their dissident ideas. Therefore, the book also deals with the culture of Russia and the history of the Opposition movements from its early beginnings, as well as the revolutions and dictatorships which have come to shape modern Russian society. Finally, it gives an in-depth analysis of the current Putin regime and the likely perspectives for the future of Russia within the international context.The book concludes by saying that Pussy Riot are really part of the "World Opposition" which must be based on solidarity and mutual goals. Their fight is our fight and it is far from over. Pussy Riot need our maximum support internationally, in order to protect them from abuse in prison, to fight for an early release and to defend the rest of the band from similar persecution.

Please support them in any way you can. Their resoluteness, self sacrifice and commitment to their principles are an inspiration. "The truth is precious to us more than anything, even more than freedom." Nadia Tolokonikovoy.