Moscow’s most popular park refuses to host public talk on protests in Russia

The administration of Moscow’s popular Gorky Park has cancelled a public lecture on the future of mass protests in Russia.

“After taking a closer look at the content of the planned lecture, it was decided that a park is not the place to hold any kind of lectures with political undertones,” park director Marina Li told BBC Russia. She added, “from now on, lectures with political inclinations or politicized emphasis will not be hosted by the park.”

Political scientist Irina Soboleva was scheduled to hold a talk titled “Should we expect a new wave of mass protests in Russia?” as a part of a lecture series organized by the Moscow School of Social and Economic Sciences. The talk was due to take place in Gorky Park on June 17 and was open to the public. The event will now take place in a one of the university’s auditoriums.

“It is clear that the title of the lecture is quite flashy and provocative. A park is not the place for such provocations,” [said Marina Li.]

The lecture was cancelled by the park three days before the event. It was part of a lecture series called “Open Medium,” one of many projects in Moscow meant to open expert knowledge on popular issues to the public. Gorky Park has hosted numerous lectures on a wide range of topics throughout the spring and summer of 2014 and 2015.