The Russians are known for their black and biting humor. But not everyone agrees to be made fun of.
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If you are with a Russian, it rarely takes long before you hear an anecdote. When life has become too heavy and sad, the Russians have often told political jokes to ease the pressure. This was true even during Joseph Stalin’s terror in the 1930s.
A joke from that time goes something like this: A flock of sheep panics rushing towards the Finnish border, and they ask to be allowed in.
– Stalin has ordered all elephants arrested, the sheep explain.
– But you are not elephants, the Finnish border guards say in astonishment.
– No, but try to explain it to Stalin.
Political jokes have not gone out of style. On the contrary. In recent years, stand-up comedians have become very popular in Russia. Underneath the humor is often a critique of society.
Earlier this year, a comedian joked about the Russians’ xenophobia. It had surprisingly large consequences.
Foreign name
It started on March 1 at Comedy Club number 1 in Moscow. Several comedians sat and joked, while the audience clapped and laughed. The session was broadcast on Youtube. Idrak Mirzalizade was born in Azerbaijan, has Belarusian citizenship and has lived in Russia for many years. He joked about how difficult it is for people with names like him to rent a home. The housing ads often say: “only for slaves”.
When he calls a landlord, he avoids saying his name for the longest time. The goal is for the person to hear that he speaks flawlessly Russian. But when he finally introduces himself, the reaction is: To get …
Only three months later did a Christian TV channel publish one article: «Comedian insults the Russians». A nationalist organization sent Message to half a million followers that he had “insulted the Russian nation while the audience clapped”. Vladimir Solovyov, who leads a debate program on state television, required that the comedian had to be prosecuted.
Mirzalizade received thousands of hate messages. Two men beat him up and demanded that he apologize.
In August, he stayed convicted to ten days in prison for hate propaganda and for humiliating a group of people. The comedian thought he was not guilty, but apologized to those who had been offended. He said the goal was only to make fun of xenophobia.
A few weeks ago, the Interior Ministry declared him an unwanted person. He was deported from Russia for the rest of his life. The reason for the severe punishment was completely different, commentators believe.
Several cases
The Belarusian is far from alone:
- Last week, two actors were sentenced to ten days in prison for making fun of local politicians in the far east of the country. It reported a local TV channel.
- Earlier this year, Yuri Khovansky was arrested for justifying terrorism after he sang a song about a terrorist attack. He faces up to seven years in prison.
- In 2018, Danila Poperechny was investigated for making fun of Orthodox priests.
–Less political satire
Several popular artists have ended up with political satire. Instead, they have started joking about everyday things. It writes Jan Sjenkman, columnist in the newspaper Novaja Gazeta.
He believes that there is a trend for the authorities to go after comedians. The message is that they should stay away from politics. The police regularly come and film performances. Afterwards, they troop up behind the scenes and give the artists a clear message to avoid political issues.
– In the future, fewer people will dare to create political humor and satire, he believes.
In practice, it has become taboo to joke in public with several topics. That is the opinion of Oleg Zintsov in the magazine Republic. It is:
- President Vladimir Putin and other powerful men.
- The church
- Stalin. Russia banned the comedy, among other things The Death of Stalin.
At the same time, it is not a problem to make fun of gay, lesbian or liberal democrats, he believes. He points out that even Putin does so without anyone reacting.
Not humor?
Critics wonder if the authorities lack humor. However, several Russian tops have become known for their jokes. Putin also tends to joke. A few years ago, Aftenposten was at a conference opened by the president. He looked over the list of participants.
– I see that there is a Mr. Engels from Germany on the list. Thank God he came without Marx, Putin joked, referring to the founders of communism.
Two decades ago, the nuclear submarine “Kursk” went down, and it was a rescue operation that the whole world followed. There was great speculation about the incident. Putin was interviewed by the now deceased Larry King on CNN. King asked what had really happened to the nuclear submarine.
“It sank,” Putin replied.
–Do not like to be laughed at
Russian leaders like to joke themselves, but not everyone likes to be made fun of. This should also apply to Putin:
- Some years ago, the program Kukly was taken off the poster. The name means “dolls”, and it was political satire. Putin is said to have disliked the way he was portrayed.
- Several politicians reacted strongly when housewife Noldus in the Harry Potter films resembled the president.
- Last summer, comedian Alexander Dolgopolov escaped from Russia when police investigated him for a joke about the president.
–Hair ulcers rich?
And that takes us back to the comedian Idrak Mirzalizade from earlier. He was thus expelled from Russia for the rest of his life for insulting the Russians.
But what was the real reason for the very severe punishment? It must be that he insulted Igor Setsjin, analysts believe. Setsjin is an oil billionaire. He has close ties to Putin.
The comedian joked that he usually takes a picture of Sechin to demonstrations to scare the police.
Mirzalizade has now sued the authorities for the decision to evict him. And a court has temporarily revoked the decision while it examines whether the lawsuit should actually be processed. Experts doubt whether he has any chance of winning.
–Long tradition
In Russia, leaders have always been ridiculed. In periods of strong repression, the hard-pressed Russians have often resorted to the only available weapon: humor. It has been a form of political protest.
At times in the Soviet Union, however, it was dangerous to tell such jokes – or to laugh at them. If the wrong person heard it, one could be sent to a prison camp in Siberia.
– Laughter is a very serious matter, remarked the Soviet artist Aleksandr Raykin during Stalin’s terror.
Nor does Putin avoid being joked about. Putin’s circle has become tyrannical during his presidency. Many Russians believe that the president has also become a strong man:
Putin, how much are two divided by two? Putin answers: As always. One for you and three for me.
(If you want to read more Russian jokes, you can scroll further down.)
–More jokes from the east
Here are a bunch of jokes that the Russians have told in different time periods.
Dangerous humor:
In the Soviet Union, it could be dangerous to tell a joke. Even the Russians joked about:
A judge leaves the courtroom laughing. A colleague asks what he is laughing at.
– I just heard the world’s funniest joke.
– Then you have to tell it, says the other judge.
– I can not. I just gave a person ten years in prison for it.
Lack of various foods:
Before the collapse of communism in 1991, many of the shelves in grocery stores were often empty. And those were long queues.
A man walks into a grocery store and asks a clerk: – Do you have any meat? The clerk answers: – No, we do not have fish in this shop. It’s the shop across the street that has no meat.
Stalin:
During the dictator’s purges, hundreds of thousands of people were killed. Many were forced to confess something they had not done. The head of the secret police was Lavrentij Berija for many years.
Stalin loses his favorite pipe. After a few days, Lavrentij Stalin asks:
– Did you find your pipe?
– Yes, I found it under the sofa, Stalin answers happily.
– Yes, but it is impossible, Lavrentij exclaims. – Three men have already confessed to the crime.
Leonid Brezhnev:
Many Russians believed that the Soviet leader was senile. He was known for mumbling as he read endlessly long and boring speeches.
1) Someone knocks on the door of Brezhnev’s office. Brezhnev walks to the door, puts on his glasses, takes out a sheet from his pocket and begins to read: – Who is it?
2) After Brezhnev gives a speech, he is angry with the speechwriter. – I asked for a speech that would last 15 minutes, but this lasted for 45 minutes.
– I gave you three copies of the speech.
Mikhail Gorbatsjov:
The last leader of the Soviet Union started a campaign for the Russians to drink less alcohol. It was not popular.
A worker stands in a long queue to buy vodka at the liquor store.
– Now I’ve had enough. Can you keep my place? I will go to shoot Gorbachev, he says to the person in front of him.
Two hours later he returns.
– Did you shoot him?
– No, the queue there was much longer than here.
Vladimir Putin:
Critics say the president is authoritarian and crackdowns on opponents, and that he does not shy away from any means.
1) Putin is asleep and Stalin comes to him in dreams.
– I have two pieces of advice for you: Kill all your enemies and paint the Kremlin blue, says Stalin.
– Why blue? Putin asks.
2) Putin opens the fridge and sees a plate of skeletons shaking. – You do not need to tremble. I’ll just have milk, says the president.
(Source: Ben Lewis: Hammer & Tickle)
Per Kristian Aale is Aftenposten’s Moscow correspondent. Follow him on Instagram here or on Facebook her.
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