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The afternoon of Friday, August 17th, the verdict came in in the "hooliganism" trial of Pussy Riot, and once again Mother Russia demonstrated her refusal to accept that dissent is essential to democracy. Three members of the  Russian feminist punk collective--Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Maria Alyokhina and Yekaterina Samutsevich--were convicted and sentenced to two years in prison for the "crime" of staging an impromptu anti-Vladimir Putin performance inside a Moscow church earlier this year. Sentencing was pronounced after a long verdict pronouncement in which Pussy Riot's protest action was described as "against tradition and a great insult to the church and people."

The European Union called the decision "deeply troubling", going on to say that it "puts a serious question mark over Russia's respect for international obligations of fair, transparent, and independent legal process." No kidding. Amnesty International went further, calling the verdict "a bitter blow for freedom of expression in the country", and adding, "This trial is another example of the Kremlin's attempts to discourage and delegitimize dissent."

On a not unrelated note, earlier on Friday, the nation's top court upheld a band on Gay Pride Parade in Moscow for the next 100 years. All in all, a chillingly productive day for the homophobic, dissent-intolerant Russian bear.

Pussy Riot's detention and persecution had of course become a music  and art world cause celebre--this week in New York alone there were a staged reading of Pussy Riot's courtroom statements, and on Friday, a march and rally.  Meantime, just in time for the verdict comes this video from musician and activist Peaches, as loud a voice as one could hope to have in your corner, who along with Simonne Jones organized and documented a pro-Pussy Riot event in Berlin recently. In addition, there are taped bits from some of Peaches' famous friends. Among those who took part: JD Samson, Lykke Li, The Hives, Light Asylum, Bun E. Carlos, Miike Snow, The Knife, and Kate Nash. Quite an assemblage, and for good reason. 

As we hope that the Russian officials overturn the verdict and release Pussy Riot, that seems to be unlikely. But we can offer our NV Music Video of the Day, Peaches and many others who know that democracy without freedom of speech means nothing, with a simple message: "Free Pussy Riot".