Echoing ‘Immortal Regiment’ World War II march, Moscow opposition groups request permit for ‘Immortal Gulag’ march

The “Immortal Regiment” memorial march is a staple of collective memory in contemporary Russia: In it, marchers carry photographs of relatives and others who were killed in the Second World War. In an apparent attempt to elevate internal Soviet repressions to the cultural status of the war, a group of Russian opposition organizations is petitioning to hold a march called “Immortal Gulag” in central Moscow.

The organizers for the proposed march include representatives of three different opposition parties: PARNAS, Yabloko, and Civic Initiative (now called The Party of Change). A number of simultaneous marches are being planned outside Moscow as well. The event’s organizers called on potential participants to march with images of “their repressed relatives and other victims of the communist terror.” They said the march’s demands would include legal rehabilitation for victims of the Soviet repressions, access to archives related to the repressions, and an end to current repressions in contemporary Russia.