A year and some months later.....I'm back
After careful consideration and pressuring from my co-worker Linda, I am posting this assertion that I have written on the current social disaster that is Russia.......
Where should I start........Human rights seem like a good place. For a far left history of the country and still fairly left, equal rights and recognition is a complete and utter joke. First of all, you have to understand that Russia is a country with one race, White Russians. That's it! Total I maybe saw two black people(excluding the Nigerian exchange students), and remember that I lived in a city considerable bigger than Detroit. I can only imagine how much more ignorant and exclusive the rural parts of Russia are. I have come up with a theory, that Russia practices an invisible citizens sort of ideal ology. Almost as though they sweep what the deem unacceptable or embarrassing under a massive Persian rug (they love Persian rugs). Along with people of African descent, I never saw a handicapped person, gay person, or frankly anyone who strayed to far from the typical Russian. The way my host sister put it, is that all the handicapped people live in there houses because it is extremely difficult to get around in Russia. Never once did I see a ramp, sign for parking, or much less a means of public transportation that was easily accessible for a person with needs. The last point is the most important being that public is the primary means of transportation for most Russians in Volgograd. As far as homosexuals go, forget about it. For a country which is primarily God-less the still do not like the idea of homosexuality. That was a surprise because I was always under the impression that homophobia largely stemmed from religion, it's not necessarily the case. For example in Moscow the have a group of Orthodox Youth, who patrol a popular park in Moscow that is known as a "gay hangout." Either way these kids have the right to "clear" this park from the moral authority of Russia. These kids have also been getting help from local skin heads who have joined the cause, with full support from the mayor of Moscow. There is a great article in the NYT today about it! In the city I lived in they had a gay bar, and there were rumors all of the city that if you went to this bar you would get AIDS, because apparently people like to prick you with infected needles! When in actuality it estimated that one in six people have AIDS in Volgograd, the vast majority being heterosexual of course! How ridiculous, fear breeds hate and these people are a perfect example. Women are treated horribly as well. It is estimated that a woman dies every hour in Russia as a result of domestic violence. One time, there was a couple walking down the street both visibly drunk, and the man started to hit his wife because she was "too" drunk. It got to such a severe point to where the women was on the ground getting her face kicked by this abusive maniac! Of course I was the one to speak up. I ran to who ever I could find, and told them to call the cops because someone getting attacked and everyone could see what I was talking about. The common response I got was "mind your own business." If that woman would have been killed that night, people would have walked over her, it was disgusting. After that I hated the country for about a week and then I met a lot of people who better represented the country!
However, poor the Russians may seem, if everyone is poor than no one is poor, if that makes sense. They are content in the way they are living and I believe socialism is to thank for that. But most older Russians you will meet will express their concern for the growing class gaps now emerging in society. If you are American than they really will express their fear of becoming like America. The problem was explained in Russian by my host mom, so this is what I got from it. In the old days (USSR) they would stand in very, very long lines, to get a little bit of food, i.e. bread, sausage, cheese, and sometimes not get any. Now they can walk into any store and have an abundance for anything they want and however much they want. So basically in the old days there was plenty of money, but nothing to buy. And now there is plenty of things to buy but no money. Not exactly a smooth switch of economies. Just one of the many problems that their fragile democracy faces.
Now I know my ranting my create a horrible image of Russian life and culture, and however accurate it may be, there are def. good people. Russians maybe rude to foreigner and even each other, but only when the are strangers. Every walks around with a scowl, a very tough face. But then they get to know you and vice versa, and they are the kindest most hospitable people. My host family was great, they insisted that I ate more than I could ever need, so I wouldn't return to my mother skinny! They made sure to pay attention to everything that I liked so they could give me more of it. Everyday they tried to give me the peanut butter that their daughter brought from America, because they don't have it in Russia, and I was sure to miss it! They were kind hearted people and a real pleasure to live and learn with. It was a great experience that I will remember for the rest of my live. Believe me there is much, much more to be told, but something has to be a catalyst for my story telling. So if something pops in my head I will tell it, so you may be hearing stories for quite some time