Travel to places of deprivation

"Travels through places of deprivation" is an autobiographical book by Ivan Astashin, a political prisoner who spent almost 10 years in strict regime colonies. This is not just a memoir, but an observation of life in the conditions of prison violence, alienation and repression. The book documents the daily life of prisoners, records the facts, but at the same time it is filled with humanity, support and life-affirming meaning. A strong voice from within the system.

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Ivan Astashin is a political prisoner, the figurehead of the first in a long chain of cases invented by the special services, qualified under the article on terrorism. In 2009, Ivan and his comrades participated in an action against the FSB on "Day of the Chekist" - setting fire to the FSB department in the South-West District of Moscow. According to the court's decision, Ivan served 9 years and 9 months in prison - most of the time in the strict regime camps of the Krasnoyarsk Territory.

"Journey" is the most important document of the era, testifying to the modern Russian prison reality, which in many ways serves as a manifestation of the repressive structure of life in Russia. Ivan takes a close look, records the facts of prison life, describes the variety of forms of existence in the prison in the most diverse living conditions, which he had the opportunity to observe and experience personally.

Much of the text of the book speaks of the continuously reproduced violence in the prison, which permeates all levels of the work of the bodies of the penal system. And yet, behind all the horrors of prison life, a powerful life-affirming message comes to the fore in Ivan's text: a word about brotherhood and mutual help, solidarity between prisoners and possible resistance to violence, the ability to find joy in simple things and to be free, even for a short time, in the unfree prison world.