Systemic and Non-Systemic Opposition in the Russian Federation

Book excerpt: Over the period December 2011-July 2013 a tidal wave of mass protests swept through the Russian Capital and engulfed scores of cities and regions. Civil society, it appeared, had at last woken up. This fascinating book examines the rise and fall of the non-systemic opposition and the role of the systemic political opposition during this turbulent period. Leading experts in the field from Russia along with scholars from the UK and the US reflect on the conditions that have made large-scale protests possible, the types of people who have taken part and the goals of the opposition movement at both the national and regional levels. Contributors discuss what steps the regime has taken in response to this challenge and examine the relationship between the systemic and non-systemic opposition and what potential exists for the creation of a broad-based opposition coalition. The role of the expanding Russian middle class is discussed along with contemporary developments among the Russian left against the backdrop of the global economic crisis. The political, social and ethnic dimensions of the protest movement are also examined at both the national and regional levels in this truly comprehensive study of the rebirth of civil society in modern Russia.