Navalny and the Green Antiseptic

The event

In April 2017 in Moscow, Alexei Navalny was attacked: a green antiseptic liquid, known in Russia as "zelyonka" or brilliant green, was splashed in his face. According to reports from the time, Navalny was attacked by two unidentified individuals, and following the incident he sought medical treatment, with reports also mentioning health consequences.

In the photo that circulated online, Navalny is standing in an office setting in a dark jacket and a light-colored shirt with a tie, his face and part of his clothing covered in spots of green dye. The photograph was taken right after the incident, and it was this image that became the source for later edits.

Photoshops and memes

After the photo was published, photoshopped images appeared showing the politician in various settings, with the green dye transferred onto other objects or characters. Such pictures were made by both Navalny's supporters and his opponents, as well as by users who simply wanted to react to a high-profile news story. The tone of the edits varied considerably: some read as a neutral comment on the event, while others used the incident as an occasion for political irony.

Because the subject involves a real person and an act of violence, it's important for the reader to distinguish between the documentation of a fact and the author's irony. An encyclopedic description should emphasize that the attack was a real event, and that the memes are only a secondary reflection of it online.

Political context

In 2017, Navalny was a well-known opposition politician, headed the Anti-Corruption Foundation, and was preparing to run in the presidential election. His activities provoked sharp disagreement: some saw him as a leader of the protest movement, others as a political rival to those in power. Because of this, any incident involving him drew wide attention and triggered mass reactions online.

Later, in 2020, Navalny was hospitalized after a poisoning that, according to the findings of several foreign laboratories and the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, was caused by a substance from the "Novichok" group. These events are often mentioned in connection with the broader story of his public activity, although they aren't directly related to this particular meme.

Significance in internet culture

The series is mentioned in overviews of 2017 internet folklore as an example of how a real event turns into a set of pictures. It's used to illustrate the theme of public reaction to incidents and to describe how visual edits can cement a politician's image in the public mind.

It's worth noting that the original image remains a documentary photograph, and that any use of it should indicate the context and date. Edits presented without explanation can create a distorted impression of the event, so it's better to accompany them with background information.

At the same time, using such images correctly calls for caution. A good practice is to place the original photo next to the edit and briefly describe what happened. That way the reader tells documentary evidence from a joke and does not mistake the secondary image for the original.