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Smolny Beyond Borders Hosts Conversation with Sasha Skochilenko ’17

Sasha Skochilenko ’17, artist, musician, and former political prisoner, talks about her experience studying anthropology at Smolny College of Saint Petersburg State University and how her liberal arts education strengthened her antiwar position, which was reflected in her courtroom speech “Oh yes, life!” on the value of life and reconciliation amidst war and conflict, and helped her to survive her imprisonment. The conversation, held on April 7 at Bard College Berlin, was moderated by Ilya Kalinin, Skochilenko’s former professor and supervisor at Smolny College, currently a Smolny Beyond Borders fellow and Einstein fellow at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin.

Skochilenko, who was born in Leningrad, openly opposed the Russian invasion of Ukraine and was subsequently detained by riot police and later arrested in 2022 for spreading pacifist leaflets under the accusation of “spreading knowingly false information about Russian Armed Forces.” During her imprisonment, she started an “Imprisoned for Peace” performance and participated in exhibitions of prison art. Skochilenko was sentenced to seven years in a penal colony. On August 1, 2024, Skochilenko was released in Ankara as part of a complex international prisoner exchange, having spent more than two years in prison. She currently lives in Germany.

Beyond her activism, she published the educational comic A Book About Depression (2014), which quickly became a Russian internet sensation and helped to destigmatize mental health issues in Russia. She also founded the antihierarchical musical collective “Free Random Jam.” Skochilenko will receive Bard’s Laszlo Z. Bito Award for Humanitarian Service in 2025 for her activism and bravery in the face of repression, imprisonment, and adversity.

Further reading:
“Case Study on Sasha Skochilenko: Anti-War Russian Political Prisoner,” prepared by Bard Human Rights major (and former student at Smolny College) Sofia Semenova

Bard and Smolny College Graduate Released from Russia in Historic Prisoner Swap

Post Date: 04-15-2025