Pussy Riot, the Russian punk band once imprisoned for criticizing President Vladimir Putin, have released their first English-language song, "I Can't Breathe," in honor of Eric Garner, the New York City man who died after being put in a chokehold by police.
"Illegal violence in the name of the state kills not only its victims, but those who are chosen to carry out these actions," the group
told BuzzFeed News in an emailed statement.
"We’ve known, on our own skin, what police brutality feels like and we can’t be silent on this issue."
The song's accompanying video, released Wednesday, depicts band members Masha Alekhina and Nadya Tolokonnikova being buried alive while wearing Russian riot-police uniforms.
"Policemen, soldiers, agents, they become hostages and are buried with those they kill, both figuratively and literally," they explained. "Russia is burying itself alive in terms of the rest of the world. Committing suicide. Daily."
The people shoveling the dirt are not seen, but it is indicated at the beginning and end of the video that they are smoking Russian Spring cigarettes.
"'Russian Spring' is a term used by those who are in love with Russia's aggressive militant actions in Ukraine, and the cigarettes are a real thing," the group wrote in a statement accompanying the video.
In the final minutes of the song, a man reads a transcript of Eric Garner's real-life confrontation with the NYPD. The incident, which occurred in July and set off months of worldwide protest, ends with the phrase "I Can't Breathe." Garner uttered the phrase 11 times before he died in police custody.
In addition to the primary video, Pussy Riot has also released a second version featuring protest footage that followed the grand jury decision to not indict the police officer that put Garner in the chokehold.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.