The story’s gone viral. Miriam Elder‘s BuzzFeed article on Friday really kicked things off, BBC has picked it up, TIME, Newsweek/Daily Beast, HuffPo, The Guardian, Yahoo, LA Times, Le Monde, RFI, Interfax, and Al Jazeera. CNN is contacting Nadya’s husband Petya Verzilov right now. This is a good thing.

So a lot of times when this happens with something you are interested in or a situation you are closely following or involved with, the next question is “but what can I do?” When the answer is “not much,” that feeling of helplessness and frustration sets in. We know it. Luckily, this is not one of those situations.

What we can and need to do here is very clear. The reason this situation is going viral is because it’s being monitored, from some decidedly remote regions of Russia (decidedly, decided by…you get it). Verzilov has been leading a team of activists demonstrating for access to and information on Nadya, and local lawyers are hired to represent and monitor both Nadya and Masha at the camps, to check in on them regularly and consistently. This happens with the support of your donations. You hit the donate button here, and the money goes from us to them.

So now the challenge currently is increased, these games being played in terms of withholding information on and access to Nadya, the mystery over where they are sending her and what shape she is in, this eats significant resources. The ground support team, a dedicated group far from home as the Russian winter approaches, incurs increased travel costs to canvas Siberian locations in search Nadya, the costs of finding local attorneys and monitors increases, while ongoing family visitation and trial attendance costs, monitoring expenses for Masha, and childcare for the children of both continue.

So here’s the thing, if you are wondering “how can I possibly help,” easy answer for this one: donate, fund raise, and if you can’t, help us spread the word on the fund and keep the issue alive in your own news feed.

There is a great international, borderless support community at work here, and you are part of it. Together we keep this issue alive. When others would say “who cares anymore? It’s been over a year?” and “you can’t fight the turn of the 24-hour news cycle,” this community says “nonsense.” We’ve been working with Pussy Riot and their families since the trial and we’ve heard it all, but what we always hear louder is the voice of this community. The whole point of social media is that we are the media. Our collective voices are strong. And so is our economic power if we choose to use it together. This is how it’s going to be going forward I believe if the good people of the world are going to have a chance. We need to stick together, and we need to support each other, nevermind the borders, nevermind the distance.

In terms of going forward on this issue, we are hoping FSIN officials will disclose that she is safe and that they have reported the new prison location within 10 days of her arrival as required by Russian law, but let’s be clear about:

1) The timeline: as we previously posted, it’s been 2 weeks since access to Nadya, the last person to meet with her was monitoring attorney Dimitry Dinze on October 18th, and the family was able to last confirm her location in Mordovia on October 21. We’ve got the full timeline here.

and

2) As we have stated before, it is both the ongoing blockade of access to and information about Nadya that is at issue and precipitating international concern. Access to her legal team and family is a human and legal right that she has not been properly afforded since her disclosure of the abuses at Mordovia camp IR-14, and we, together with the international support community will continue to call for these rights until they are granted. The life and safety of Nadya are at stake and we call on FSIN not to play any more games with either.

Hoping for some positive news soon on her location and condition, and thanks to all who are participating in this community and this issue.

Hunter Heaney
Executive Director
The Voice Project

The Voice Project’s Pussy Riot Support Fund is an international fund taking in donations from around the world; proceeds are used to keep Nadya and Masha clothed, supplied, visited and monitored in the labor camps (this is critical for their ongoing safety), and for their legal expenses and children’s care. For more information or to donate: voiceproject.org/pussyriot