“Now it's all on us”: how you help a political prisoner's family in a village
07.08.2025
Hello!
This is Ksenia Fadeeva from the Marathon of solidarity with political prisoners “You are not alone”.
Thanks to your support we help not only political prisoners but also their families. It matters a great deal to us that someone who is behind bars for their beliefs knows for sure that their loved ones outside have not been left without support.
Often the person who goes to prison is the family’s main breadwinner. The old needs haven’t gone anywhere: the children still need clothes and toys, they have to go to school, mum has to buy food and pay the rent and the bills. Only now she has to do it all without dad, and on top of the usual expenses come the parcels for her husband and the children’s father.
Sometimes the person behind bars is the one who held literally everything together at home. Recently the family of a political prisoner from a Russian village turned to the Marathon. The family has a large farm: chickens, geese, sheep, horses, cows, pigs. And now all of it has fallen on the shoulders of two young men, the prisoner’s sons.
This is what they wrote to us:
Before he was put in the detention centre, our father ran the farm practically on his own. Now that burden has fallen on us, his sons. In summer we make hay and straw. To do that we need to get fuel and oil in advance. We need around 400 litres of fuel, plus engine oil and hydraulic oil for the trailer. At today’s prices the diesel costs us 25,000–30,000 roubles, and the oil around 10,000. Something always breaks during haymaking: dad, an experienced mechanic, used to fix everything himself, but we have to either manage the repairs somehow or buy spare parts. In autumn we always have to buy oats for the horses and sheep for the winter, barley for the cows and wheat for the poultry. And we mustn’t forget the veterinary medicines: every autumn and spring we vaccinate against all kinds of infections. In winter we take the horses out to winter pasture, and once a week we have to check on their condition and whereabouts so they don’t wander too far from the village.
The Marathon gave money for the farm’s needs and provides regular monthly help with parcels and visits to the political prisoner. This kind of support is the most effective: in a difficult situation it gives people something to lean on and lets them plan their lives at least a little ahead.
For security reasons we don’t reveal the names of the people we help. But we regularly receive their thanks, and we’re happy to share one of them with you:
Hello. The transfer has arrived. Thank you personally and your whole team for such important and much-needed help and support. Please don’t abandon us 🙏. You may not even realise how much easier your support makes life for our family. It’s like oxygen! Thank you!
Thank you for caring. Thanks to your support, political prisoners know they are not alone. Set up a recurring donation so that we can give ongoing help to more people.
Kind regards,
Ksenia Fadeeva