Belozyorov said that on the day in November when Skochilenko was sentenced, she was permitted to give a final statement — a speech she called “Yes, Life.”
“Even though I am the one in the cage, perhaps I am much freer than you … I have no enemies. I’m not afraid to remain poor, I’m not afraid to lose the roof over my head. I’m not afraid to seem strange, vulnerable, weak, funny. I’m not afraid to be different from others. Perhaps this is why my state is so afraid of me and others like me — since it keeps me in a cage, like a most dangerous animal.”
Inside the cage in the courtroom, Skochilenko looked expectantly at the judge, waiting for her verdict. Belozyorov said that when the sentence was delivered, Skochilenko simply smiled and made the heart sign with her fingers. As the judge exited the courtroom, the crowd shouted “Shame! Shame!”
Belozyorov said Subbotina tried to convince the guards to let her touch her girlfriend’s hand — but they refused. He says Subbotina responded by shouting. “[When Sasha] heard the verdict, she laughed. But when she saw what was happening to Sonya, she just couldn’t hold her tears,” he said.
Skochilenko’s support system has found some “serenity” in the verdict, Belozyorov said — life is no longer uncertain. Skochilenko herself seems to have found strength in the decision. Not only is she drawing and writing, she’s even taking commissions.
Belozyorov said that “she wanted to deliver a message.” It’s simply this: love and peace can prevail over war and hatred. And he thinks the way she has handled herself during detention is an example of that.
“That wasn’t her plan when she put those small stickers. She wasn’t up to it. She didn’t expect it. But when she found herself in [detention], she understood now it’s time for her to deliver a message.”
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