Hi, I'm Jonathan Kapart, and welcome to K-Pup.

Russian President Vladimir Putin figures prominently in American politics and the presidency of Donald Trump.

But who is this guy really?

At the Aspen Ideas Festival in June, I asked this very question of Masha Gessin, a journalist who wrote a book about him and fled

Russia because of him.

Masha Gessin, thank you very much for being And

thank you very much for being on the podcast.

Thank you for having me.

So when we first met, it was back in what, 2013?

I think it was in the fall of 2013.

Right.

And I was moderating a panel with you and I think two other people and we were talking about

LGBT rights and what was happening outside of the United States and how at that time things seem to be going

great in the United States in terms of the advance of marriage equality but around

the world there seemed to be a retrenchment and you said in that meeting that at

the time you and your wife were going to leave Russia and get your children out of Russia.

Talk about what was happening in Russia at the time

and why you made that decision to leave.

So Russia was at the beginning of a period of political crackdown that has now lasted for seven years

that began when Putin came back into office in 2012 amidst mass protests.

And what he decided to do in response to the protests

was queer-bate the protesters.

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