NEW – January 23, 2023
I repeat, as I already wrote, readers sent me the publication of the fugitive Russian oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky, where my photo at the Mariupol maternity hospital surfaced again! I wonder if Mikhail or his speechwriters are even aware of the context of what is happening? Do they know the story of this photo, have they seen my comments about it? And in general, why can anyone who wants to take my photo and attach any comment under it?
Feminists talk a lot about objectification of women when the image of a person is used without attention to their personality. But, unfortunately, objectification is not only a problem of gender relations, it is also characteristic of propaganda. You take someone else’s photo or image, ignore the person’s position, do not take into account their words and just write what you want under a beautiful picture. This happened initially when my photo (real, not fake and not staged) was used by Associated Press journalists in their materials without my comment and my direct quote. Moreover, in those conditions, I had no connection and, accordingly, the opportunity to object to something. Now Mr. Khodorkovsky repeats the same thing – he uses my image in order to give meaning to his words. At the same time, unfortunately, his words have nothing to do with reality, because he was not in Mariupol either during the hostilities or after their end. And yes, I can compare the siege of Leningrad with what I saw in Mariupol. But only an outspoken propagandist and manipulator can unilaterally blame the Russian side for this.
Let me remind you that my family could not leave for evacuation because the Ukrainian leadership of Mariupol did not organise such an evacuation, did not inform people about the possibility of leaving, turning them into hostages of urban fighting. And I was able to escape with my newborn daughter only when the DPR forces entered the city. First of all, they organised the removal of civilians from a military and humanitarian disaster-stricken city. I understand that Mikhail Khodorkovsky will ignore my post, but I really hope that he will still see it and will henceforth become a little more selective when using other people’s photos for manipulative purposes. And then somehow it turns out ugly.
Marianna Vyshemirskaya
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