THE GUARDIAN: President complains west ‘trying to cancel a whole 1,000-year culture’ after invasion of Ukraine
Vladimir Putin has accused the west of discriminating against Russian culture, comparing the treatment of Russian cultural figures with that of the “cancelled” Harry Potter author JK Rowling.
At a televised meeting on Friday with leading cultural figures, Putin said the west was “trying to cancel a whole 1,000-year culture, our people”, citing cancellations of events involving Russian artists in protest at the invasion of Ukraine.
“They’re now engaging in the cancel culture, even removing Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich and Rachmaninov from posters. Russian writers and books are now cancelled,” Putin said.
A number of events involving Russian cultural figures who have expressed backing for the war have been called off, including concerts by the award-winning Russian conductor Valery Gergiev, a friend and supporter of Putin, who was part of the meeting on Friday. » | Pjotr Sauer | Friday, March 25, 2022
