Gorky Park Declines to Host Lecture on Possibility of Russian Protests

June 16, 2015

The management of Moscow's Gorky Park refused to host a lecture on the Russian protest movement due to its provocative content, the BBC Russian Service reported Monday.

The lecture, to be given by political scientist Irina Soboleva and titled "Should we expect new protests in Russia?" was scheduled to take place on June 17 as part of the Open Space series, an initiative by the Moscow School of Social and Economic Sciences. Soboleva told the BBC that the lecture was of an educational character and had no political agenda.

Gorky Park's PR director, Marina Li, told the BBC the decision was taken after examining the content of the lecture. "It's clear that the title of the lecture was somewhat inflammatory and controversial. A park is no place for provocations," Li was quoted as saying.

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