I’m Russian, My Wife Is Ukranian — Here’s How Putin’s Actions Make Me Feel

I am embarrassed.

Sergey Faldin 🇺🇦

--

Photo by Michael Parulava on Unsplash

I’ll be honest. I don’t like writing or talking about politics. Where I am from, nobody does.

My generation — people born in the late 1990s — was brought up in a dictatorship country with no rights and no ability to voice our minds. We were sold the idea that nothing we do or say matters — because it really doesn’t. We were told that at any point, the modern-day version of KGB (called FSB) might be listening to us. We were taught that no matter how hard we vote, it won’t change a thing.

Nobody can do anything. So why bother?

“It’s not us, it’s them, the people in power.”

We — people of Russia, are not in charge. We are imprisoned. We’re not to blame. It’s not our fault.

Right?

Most people in modern-day Russia are faced with two options: shut up and get used to it — making the most of the corrupt system, learning to navigate its treacherous waters — OR leave.

I chose the latter.

Last year, my wife and I left Russia last year and we don’t intend on coming back. Because we care about the truth, we want to live a good life, and most of all: we value our ability to say what we think without…

--

--

Sergey Faldin 🇺🇦

Honest thoughts. Unpopular opinions. Not necessarily true or smart. | The Guardian, Al Jazeera, Meduza | Personal stories: sergeys.substack.com