"It’s clear what we need to do": In Russia, war opposition is mounting

A huge slice of Russia’s population is passive, for now, realizing there are risks to speaking out. But a surprising number are doing so. So far, 14,980 have been detained for demonstrating against the war, according to OVD-Info, a nongovernmental organization that tracks protests and arrests. In Moscow, a woman standing before the city’s majestic cathedral holding a sign that said “The Sixth Commandment, Thou Shalt Not Kill” was reportedly hustled away by police. Protests have erupted in more than 100 cities.

Thousands of Russian scientists, journalists and scholars have also signed protest letters. One open letter from scientists and science journalists has nearly 8,000 signatures. “War with Ukraine is a step to nowhere,” they declared. Russia has “doomed itself to international isolation. It has devolved into a pariah country,” they added, meaning that scientists will no longer be able to cooperate with colleagues abroad. At St. Petersburg University, 2,657 students and staff signed an open letter against the war. A “‘special military operation’ is a war,” they said. “Carrying out a ‘special military operation’ is an act of aggression. War is an absolute evil.”

At the same time, tens of thousands of Russian professionals — technology specialists, journalists, scholars and others — have fled the country in recent weeks, a debilitating brain drain.