WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) today announced that they will introduce legislation to rename a section of the street near the Russian Ambassador to the United States’ residence as “Alexei Navalny Way.” Mr. Navalny was an opposition leader and anticorruption activist who led the political opposition against Russian President Vladimir Putin for more than a decade. Putin tried to silence him by poison and later by imprisonment in remote Russia, from where he continued to advocate for a free Russia. Mr. Navalny died today in a prison inside the Arctic Circle, according to Russian authorities.
“The world is shaken at the news of Alexei Navalny’s death,” said Dr. Cassidy. “Renaming the street near the Russian Ambassador’s residence, Navalny Way memorializes his fight for freedom and democracy. When Russians visit our nation’s capital, they will remember his unflinching opposition to Putin’s dictatorial control.”
“There’s more blood on Putin’s hands today with the tragic death of Alexei Navalny in prison, all for the ‘crime’ of wanting a free Russia. Putin has tried to silence anyone in Russia who might dissent from his strategy—anyone who might have the audacity to suggest there should be democracy or freedom in that country. He sent one of his harshest critics—Alexei Navalny—to prison and, tragically, to his death. A fellow Russian patriot and friend of mine, Vladimir Kara-Murza, is also languishing in one of Putin’s gulags. Alexei’s memory and his efforts for a free Russia never be forgotten,” said Senator Durbin.
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