A Russian youth group released a video seemingly showing activists projecting footage of the Moscow Victory Parade on to the walls of the White House in Washington, DC. The group blasted President Obama for undermining Russia’s WWII victory celebrations.
The YouTube clip, uploaded on Wednesday, appears to show World
War II-era Soviet tanks and modern Russian armored vehicles
rolling through Red Square – projected on to the wall of the US
presidential residence by night. Some passers-by are seen taking
videos of the giant projection.
The video, released by students of the Russian National
Cinematographic School sets out to be more than just a prank, as
it starts with a message addressing US President Barack Obama.
Calling May 9, 1945, the “day when the new world was
born,” the group stresses the importance of celebrating
victory over Nazism internationally and together with Russia.
But, it goes on to claim, “Barack Obama has forbidden many
world leaders to visit Moscow Victory Day Parade and refused to
come himself.”
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Modern technology, however, allowed the activists to strike back
at the political pressure, “If Barack doesn’t go to Moscow
Victory Day Parade, the Parade will go to Barack!”
This is not the first time the student group has made their
statement via cinematic work, as in March they uploaded a clip
showing a projection of wall-sized lyrics of a
politically-charged song on the US embassy building in Moscow.
While the latest project appears to be nothing but a carefully
edited montage to sharp-eyed viewers, it has been met with an
overwhelming support from a young Russian audience. The video
scored half a million views in just over one day, with thousands
of likes and comments praising the creators’ “trolling level
90.”
The popularity of the stunt is no coincidence, as the rhetoric of
the White House set against the backdrop of the Ukrainian crisis
has irritated many young people in Russia. The unwillingness of
the Obama administration to take part in the 70th anniversary
Victory Day celebrations in Moscow – and particularly the
centralized Western stance on it being “inappropriate” to send
delegations to a military parade amid conflict in eastern Ukraine
– has even been taken by some as an insult to the nation.
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While Victory Day has for years been the most important holiday
for the Russians as a time of unity and memory, the 70th
anniversary is a particularly poignant milestone. Many believe it
is the last major celebration when living veterans of the war
could be honored on a national level, with fewer of them left
each year. The traditional military parade on Red Square has been
planned to include an unprecedented number of troops and military
hardware for the ‘round’ date.
Recently, when German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced she
would not attend the Moscow parade, a Russian doctor from
Novokuznetsk proposed to launch a ‘polite’ flashmob by sending
Victory Day greeting cards to Merkel’s administration address.
The Facebook post went viral, and the idea was taken up by
activists and media outlets nationwide.
Merkel, meanwhile, said she will be going to Moscow to honor WWII
veterans and victims the day after the parade, on May 10.
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