Mourners line the streets of Moscow today to pay their respects to the late opposition leader Alexei Navalny in a display of grief and solidarity that's become increasingly risky in Vladimir Putin's Russia. The name the Kremlin never speaks, chanted as Alexei Navalny's body was finally laid to rest. Thousands of people in Moscow braving the prospect of arrest to say goodbye to Vladimir Putin's greatest foe, mourners of a political martyr. Vowing that Russia will be free. Ambassadors from the United States, France, and Germany also joining the crowds with flowers in hand.
Video of Navalny's open casket, the final glimpse of a corpse finally handed back to his family and allowed to rest two weeks to the day since he took his last breaths after years spent fighting even from his prison cells Vladimir Putin's iron grip on Russia. A legacy that his widow unable to attend the funeral for safety reasons echoed in a message on social media sharing a montage of her life with Navalny. She wrote, 'I don't know how to live without you. I don't know if I can handle this or not, but I will try.'
His funeral reflecting his life, becoming a moment of resistance, as chants of 'no to war' rang through the Russian capital, with people finding strength in numbers as the crowds grew. To tell you the truth, it's very pleasant for me to be here in the company of like-minded people. Well, maybe I feel pressure, but when there are so many people, then maybe no. It's not scary when we're together.
Navalny's impact extending far beyond Russia, with memorials held around the world, in memory of a man who'd come to represent fearlessness itself. Navalny's funeral and spoke with Russians who showed up despite the serious risks and the intense security. 'Why have you come here today with so many other Russians to pay your respects?' 'I guess it's a symbolic value for people who don't agree with everything that's happening in Russia. Right. I can't be specific because we can say, like, the bad words, you know. It's risky for you to be here.' 'Yeah, it's certainly risky. So why take the risk?' 'Because that's my stance on things. And I believe that's to show solidarity, that you are not the one who has to deal with this.'
