Members of Russian Punk Band Pussy Riot Jailed For Offensive Speech: Should the Band Be Freed?

by Fergie Posted 2012/08/15 22:00:00

Related Topics: Music, Madonna, Pussy Riot

208 votes
Read all 140 opinions
Lightning Report View Results and Demographics + View Demographics

Loading Demographics... Click an icon to see demographic results Display unknown and private
	Yes	164 votes	79%
	No	44 votes	21%

The musician community has been up in arms recently over the treatment of Russian feminist punk band Pussy Riot. Three members of Pussy Riot were arrested and jailed for shouting a "punk prayer" during a performance at Moscow's Christ the Saviour Cathedral. In the "prayer," they called the Virgin Mary a feminist and yelled "Put Putin Out!" The Russian government is charging them with "hooliganism motivated by religious hatred" and they face up to three years in prison.

Madonna has been an extremely vocal advocate for the group, and various musicians including Peaches, The Knife, Miike Snow, The Hives and Peter Bjorn & John have come together to make a protest video. So, what do you think? Should Pussy Riot be freed -- or do they deserve jail time?

reports breaking news release dates videos tour dates music spectrum

reports breaking news release dates videos tour dates music spectrum

+21

Add a comment above

emily_knockout 2012/08/15 22:41:04

Yes

+6
Yes,thats what punk is all about! Speaking freely with some rage and violence,and broadcasting your opinion!
>> See Replies

More polls by Fergie

Jon Bergen 2012/08/20 09:14:41
MrSexyPants 2012/08/20 04:02:33

Yes

+2
wow. if every musical artist that said something "offensive" got jailed, the entire music industry would be in jail!! i mean i get religious ppl are very protective of their religious mascots, but come on...

reply
Mikel_mad2002 2012/08/19 16:15:41

Yes

+2
Putin is as bad as Stalin, its just that he cozies up to the West

reply
JzzLover 2012/08/19 05:53:27

No

+1
2 years is a little extreme but whatever laws the law. Not like this really matters.

reply
Monkeyvet 2012/08/19 02:02:37

Yes

+1
Yes they should be freed but most of you people are living in a fantasy world. We are not talking United States, this is Russia where free speech does not exist and you actually don't have the right to express yourself. And it is not an oppressive government taking free speech away, it is an oppressive government that forbids free speech. Most Americans don't have a clue what life is really like in Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Russia, Czech Republic etc. Freedom..................N O T!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

reply
Sean McDonald 2012/08/19 00:11:06

No

+1
meant click yes, they should be free shame that Russia hasn't changed much since 1991

reply
fudge35 2012/08/18 20:47:45

Yes

+3
They are political prisoners. Putin is the new dictator of Russia, and there is no free speech there.

reply
HillaryLover 2012/08/18 08:09:47

Yes

+1
They should also change their crude, vulgar, and juvenile name. "Little Penis" would probably be more fitting.

reply
Matti Linnanvuori 2012/08/18 04:55:23

Yes

+1
Free the slaves!

reply
Jackal 2012/08/18 01:50:31

No

+1
Because their laws are different than America. If the law says you can not do that, then you shouldn't.

reply
fudge35 to Jackal 2012/08/18 20:52:16

We can't say it's okay. That is an oppressive government taking free speech away from their citizens.

reply
Jackal to fudge35 2012/08/19 02:08:03 (edited)

That is their country. We can't push our Laws and Rules on other nations and cultures. May seem like oppression in our eyes, but things are different in other countries.

reply
fudge35 to Jackal 2012/08/20 17:47:20

Nobody is advocating that, but if they get criticized by the rest of the world, maybe they will change there ways!!!

reply
Royo 2012/08/18 01:43:42

Yes

+3
Kinda makes me happy to live in the USA, except our free speech is getting tested too. :(

reply
Paige 2012/08/18 01:23:27

Yes

+3
I guess they don't have free speech in Russia.

reply
Gia 2012/08/18 00:42:51

No

+1
They should say what they want to even in Russia.

reply
bags the Indigenous Guru 2012/08/18 00:32:31

No

+1
If this is all that has happened to them with all this world wide media attention, then be satisfied and let it go. Does the name Litvinenko mean anything to you? They're alive, and in Putin's Russia, you become enough of an issue for him.......

reply
metalformer 2012/08/18 00:31:09

Yes

+1
Their actions may have been extreme but they have the right to express themselves. Religious people like to go to rock and punk gigs and to a certain point they do exactly the same. And besides "extreme conditions demand extreme responses".

reply
sarahholmwood 2012/08/17 23:33:00

No

+1
I meant yes. Goddamn*t lol

reply
CG 2012/08/17 23:25:28

Yes

+2
They never should have been arrested in the first place.

reply
Lt. Fred 2012/08/17 22:53:01

Yes

+2
This is ridiculous,

reply
LilC 2012/08/17 22:46:22

Yes

+2
Of course, sure, they were in the wrong place, but still, they only said what many people don't have the guts to say, I totally support them! They should be freed

reply
(▪‿▪)DoctorWhoGuru(▪‿▪) 2012/08/17 22:43:41

Yes

+3

reply
Milady 2012/08/17 12:02:06

No

I'm assuming they knew what they were doing. When in Rome, do as the Romans do. You have to be aware of the laws of the countries you visit - even if you're a punk rock band.

reply
bags th... to Milady 2012/08/18 00:26:16

They're Russian....they knew what would happen to them, I'm sure. It's NO secret to anyone who/what Putin is. That's why they aimed at him. Brave girls. Some people fight for freedom with a gun, some with a guitar.

reply
Milady to bags th... 2012/08/18 00:56:04

+1
Point taken. :(

reply
Mark5610 2012/08/17 11:51:35

Yes

+1

reply
David Lewis 2012/08/16 21:06:26

No

do the crime do the time

reply
Jon Bergen to David L... 2012/08/20 09:28:39

The prosecution charged they were not engaged in political speech, but in hate speech directed against the Russian Orthodox Church. The reality is otherwise, even opposite (see my comment above). Under Russian law, they are not guilty of the crime of which they are accused, nor deserving of a sentence for a crime they did not commit.

reply
stevegtexas@aol.com 2012/08/16 20:37:40

Yes

+1
Members of Russian Punk Band Pussy Riot Jailed For Offensive Speech: Should the Band Be Freed?

by FergiePostedAugust 15, 2012 (22 hours ago) Stevegtexas@aol.com ANSWERED: im still wondering about what happend to the guy who threw the shoe at George Bush!!!

reply
Ang74 2012/08/16 20:03:07

Yes

But they should be fined for disturbing the peace. Free speech doesn't give you the absolute right to disturb others. Say what you want, when you want, but accept that there may be consequences.

reply
bags th... to Ang74 2012/08/18 00:27:35

The is Russia. No free speech in Russia. No Constitution, no Bill of Rights.....only Putin.

reply
Matti L... to bags th... 2012/08/18 04:52:12 (edited)

+1
There is a constitution with a bill of rights in Russia guaranteening the freedom of speech. The problem is that the state gets to decide what free speech is. Just like everywhere, by the way. However, the freedom of speech does not give the right to perform in a church against the will of the managers of the church.

reply
Cellar Door 2012/08/16 19:24:10
holly go lightly 2012/08/16 16:46:42

No

+3
Yes they should be freed.The most they should get is maybe a night in jail and /or a fine.They did break the peace but being stupid is not a crime.

reply
Professor Wizard 2012/08/16 16:20:09 (edited)

No

+1
Yea.. in Russia, it is arrest for language against the government and religious hatred... in the US, we would just arrest them for "Vulgar Language!".

They know the rules of their country.. and they CHOSE to go against those rules.. they now suffer the consequence.

When in Russia.. do not do as the Americans do!

and Wow... Punk Rock in Russia is MILD... they don't like like ANY Punk Rock Girls I know!

reply
johnqpublic 2012/08/16 16:03:54

Yes

Well yeah. See why we here in America get upset when some tries to censure our 1st AMEND Right? And why we have a 2nd AMEND Right ?

reply
Gloria 2012/08/16 15:47:16

Yes

+3
I have signed several petition to free the band.

reply
Greg 2012/08/16 15:34:32

Yes

+1
The freedom of speech is an unalienable right endowed by our creator (only AFFIRMED by the US constitution's first amendment as a guarantee to US citizens, not granted by it) and no legitimate government can abridge that right. Even though, "I disapprove of what you say, I will defend to the death your right to say it." (Evelyn Beatrice Hall)

reply
johnqpu... to Greg 2012/08/16 16:13:18

The right to free speech is a 1st Amendment right contained in the Bill of Rights. Not the Constitution. A common mistake. One can say that the Constitution might convey the spirit of that innate sense of a God given right to free speech. As it ( the Constitution) tends to state very adamantly the very essence, the bedrock of what our country is and why it exists.

reply