Bret Stephen from NYT wrote an op-ed about this, although the main topic at the time was Boston marathon’s ban on Russian runners. His most salient point is:
“Second point: To reduce citizens of a state to an identity with the politics of their government is not just a gross moral simplification. It’s also a gift to people like Putin and Lukashenko, who want nothing more than to have people believing that they alone speak for all their people, and that their policies are universally supported. It should be possible for Russians and Belarusians to be both proud of their countries and ashamed of their governments.”
Westerners must show Russians that they are not the same as Russian governments who could ban people at a whim for a crime of having a certain identity. If we fail to do that, we will be seen as hypocrite.
Thanks for your essay. This is a subject I have not ever thought about, and I think I agree with you. To cancel cultural and artistic relations between countries must be counterproductive. It seems to me that just by having Russian artists visit the west, some sort of dialog might happen between Russia and ourselves. It won't be an official dialog, nor is it likely to affect the ruling classes, but hosting artists shows openness and may impress average Russian citizens in a positive way. (Seeing Russian tennis stars on the world stage for example.) We are losing the chance to convey the idea that we do not hate Russian poeple, it's the Russian government that we hate.
Bret Stephen from NYT wrote an op-ed about this, although the main topic at the time was Boston marathon’s ban on Russian runners. His most salient point is:
“Second point: To reduce citizens of a state to an identity with the politics of their government is not just a gross moral simplification. It’s also a gift to people like Putin and Lukashenko, who want nothing more than to have people believing that they alone speak for all their people, and that their policies are universally supported. It should be possible for Russians and Belarusians to be both proud of their countries and ashamed of their governments.”
Westerners must show Russians that they are not the same as Russian governments who could ban people at a whim for a crime of having a certain identity. If we fail to do that, we will be seen as hypocrite.
Thanks for your essay. This is a subject I have not ever thought about, and I think I agree with you. To cancel cultural and artistic relations between countries must be counterproductive. It seems to me that just by having Russian artists visit the west, some sort of dialog might happen between Russia and ourselves. It won't be an official dialog, nor is it likely to affect the ruling classes, but hosting artists shows openness and may impress average Russian citizens in a positive way. (Seeing Russian tennis stars on the world stage for example.) We are losing the chance to convey the idea that we do not hate Russian poeple, it's the Russian government that we hate.