Defining Inclusivity, Defying Ethnonationalism: Empirical Study of Decolonial Activism Among (Non)Russian Anti-War Initiatives

Abstract

This essay is based on a broader study on decolonial activism that emerged in response to the Russian fullscale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and is led primarily by Indigenous peoples of Russia, immigrants, people with interethnic identities and their allies. Although a large amount of research has been conducted on Russian anti-war movements, there is essentially no academic literature on decolonial activism among (non)Russians. Thus, this paper seeks to fill this gap, dispel the misconception that links decolonial activism to ethnonational movements, clarify the primary characteristics of activism, and demonstrate how it addresses the structural problems facing Russia as a state and a society which go well beyond the existing regime.