‘Russian Lives Matter’: Twitter Backlash Against Rabid Russophobia

From Russian cultural icons to the country's performing artists and even its vodka, everything from east of the Baltics to west of Alaska is being cancelled across the US and western Europe in a wave of virtue-signalling in support of the government in Kiev.

Political pundits and social media users have condemned the rise in Russophobia across the west to fever-pitch since the start of the Ukraine conflict.

The Russian-hating bug has spread faster than COVID-19 since Russia launched its de-Nazification op in Ukraine on February 24.

US universities have dropped courses on classics by long-dead Russian authors, the Cardiff Philharmonic Orchestra in Wales has announced a ban on the music of composer Tchaikovsky, its Munich counterpart fired its Russian chief conductor Valery Gergiev after he ignored an ultimatum from city Mayor Dieter Reiter to denounce his country.

New York's Metropolitan Opera cancelled concerts featuring Russian diva Anna Netrebko despite her opposition to the operation, because she refused to withdraw support for Russian president Vladimir Putin. She has since announced her retirement from concert life until further notice.

Supermarkets are even taking Russian-made vodka off the shelves.

Conservative commentator Candace Owens tweeted that "Russian lives matter" too, adding: "Absolutely appalling the way Russians are being treated in America and abroad. That our leaders and government institutions are allowing for—and at times calling for this discrimination following their global 'black lives matter' hysteria is quite telling."

"Remember the psychopaths calling for Russians to be kicked out of universities, operas, and corporations— these monsters are the kind that can reason an ethnic cleansing or genocide," Owens wrote.

"Imagine you’re a Russian living in the West. Outright xenophobia against you is allowed — encouraged even. As Stanford professor McFaul said, 'There are no innocent Russians.'," fellow conservative Mike Cernovich tweeted. "Meanwhile your family back in Russia is getting destroyed. Totally disgusted by the hate."

"Russian Americans are the people who *left* Russia," said foreign affairs pundit Clint Ehrlich. "This is like discriminating against Cuban Americans because you hate Castro."

User 'Black in the Empire' said Russophobia had become obligatory for citizenship of the US.

"To be a real American you not only have to hate Putin, you have to hate Russia, you don't only have to hate Russia, you have to hate Russians, you don't only have to hate Russians, you have to hate everything made by Russians," he said.

British commentators were also appalled at the outpouring of prejudice against Russians.

"Contours of a new woke national chauvinism, which will tie together left and right, now increasingly clear: internally, Gareth Southgate's take-the-knee decency, no statues, and externally, Russophobia," wrote University of Kent lecturer Dr Philip Cunliffe.

"We’ve gone from 'I don’t hate Russians, just the Russian government' to banning music and literature and cuisine," tweeted a history teacher in response to the Cardiff orchestra ban on Tchaikovsky. "Should we launch a witch-hunt into university Russian faculty next? Chase immigrants? Burn books?"

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