Hello!

I’m Maksim Polyakov, a correspondent for the online magazine 7x7.

A year ago, Russian authorities killed Vladimir Putin’s main opponent, politician Alexei Navalny. He died in the "Polyarny Volk" prison in the north of the country. Officially, the cause of death was a blood clot, but media and human rights groups insist that even if this was true, it was only due to inhumane conditions, denial of medical care, and constant punishment of cell confinements. After his death, Russians took to social media, saying that it was only thanks to Navalny that they became interested in politics, joined activism, and believed that change was possible in their country. In this letter, I will share the stories of several people whose political views were transformed by Navalny. Some names have been changed for safety reasons.

Estimated reading time: 7 minutes

Rustem Mulyukov, Ufa

Ufa activist Rustem Mulyukov is 47 years old. He was a defendant in the case of participating in an "extremist" organization along with Lilia Chanysheva. In the summer of 2023, he was sentenced to two and a half years in a general regime colony. Chanysheva received nine and a half years.

Rustem spent over a year in the IK-29 penal colony in Perm. He has health issues and requires lifelong hemodialysis treatment—three times a week, four hours a day. In November 2024, he was released due to his health condition.

Although Mulyukov was not formally affiliated with Navalny’s structures, his political journey began with Navalny's influence. In 2017, while a member of the Yabloko party and a human rights activist, he spoke at a rally organized by Navalny’s Ufa office. Shortly after, authorities charged him under Article 280 of the Russian Criminal Code for "public calls for extremist activity." In 2019, he received a suspended two-year sentence, which later served as evidence in the case with Chanysheva.

"I wasn’t interested in politics before Navalny, but there were signs," Rustem recalls.

"When Alexei Navalny started exposing corruption schemes, I began following his investigations. Before that, I watched a lot of Lada Rus and Svetlana Peunova, but Navalny's reports especially caught my attention. He showed how officials rob the people, talked about corruption, their yachts, palaces, and disproportionate salaries."

When news of Navalny’s death broke, Mulyukov felt a profound shock. Navalny seemed untouchable to him, and his death heightened his fear for less well-known opposition figures. Rustem, now a lawyer, writes on his VKontakte page that he "helps people survive the state."

Darya Heikkinen, Saint Petersburg

Darya is 21 years old. In June 2024, the Ministry of Justice labeled her a foreign agent. During the presidential election that year, she led the campaign headquarters of anti-war candidate Boris Nadezhdin.

Darya's political journey began in 2017, when she first heard about Navalny through his investigation "He Is Not Dimon to You."
"I was almost 14. My parents and I were in the car. Someone mentioned it on the radio, or maybe my mom was watching something on YouTube. I asked her, 'Who is Navalny? What’s this Dimon thing?' She said she didn’t know," Darya recalls.

The investigation into Dmitry Medvedev’s corruption empire made a lasting impression. Initially, Darya's mother saw Navalny as an enemy, but over time, her views changed.

"When I first learned about Navalny, he seemed like someone who genuinely cared. His team represented a new generation. For me, a 14-year-old, it felt fresh—like they could actually change things."

The news of Navalny’s death was a harsh blow for Darya. "I believed that such a person simply couldn’t die," she said. Instead of losing hope, she felt that Navalny’s sacrifice must not be in vain.

Ivan Raysulov, Tomsk

Ivan worked in Navalny’s regional office. In 2021, he was detained during a protest in support of Navalny, and the court sentenced him to eight days of arrest. The prosecution insisted he organized the rally, which was enough for the court to find him guilty.

"I learned about Navalny in 2017 when 'He Is Not Dimon to You' came out. I was finishing high school. Inspired by his work, I volunteered in campaign offices across different cities, helping with mayoral and municipal elections," Ivan says.

After 2021, when Navalny’s offices were declared "extremist," Ivan realized that any public political activity in Russia now meant a life sentence. "The desire to act remained, but the risks became too high. They still watch me after protests—the cops and the E-center [anti-extremism unit]."

Ekaterina Sonnova, Saint Petersburg

Ekaterina grew up in a family of election observers and believed early on that Russian politics were a predetermined theater.

Her perspective shifted in 2017 with Navalny’s investigation into Dmitry Medvedev. "I was already in college, more engaged in social life. All my friends were watching, reposting, discussing this investigation. Navalny spoke a language everyone understood. It was inspiring," she recalls.

Though initially skeptical of Navalny, citing disagreements on feminism and his broad political appeal, Ekaterina couldn’t deny his influence.

"My first protest was in 2021, when he was jailed [after returning from Germany]. I had always been afraid to go alone, but this time my friends and I were in shock watching his arrest. I knew I had to do something. We went to the protest," Ekaterina shares.

When she learned of Navalny’s death, she cried and refused to believe it. She visited the memorial several times to lay flowers in his memory. She found strength in the words of Navalny’s wife, Yulia, who promised to continue his work.