海角大神

What do the punk rock band Green Day, Delta Air Lines, Shell, Mercedes-Benz, Eurovision, FIFA, the Metropolitan Opera, and Disney have in common? They 鈥� and many others 鈥� are cutting ties with Russia.

Like a BTS song, standing up to Moscow is going viral.聽

Beyond the official government sanctions, the speed at which private companies, sports organizations, athletes, and artists have expressed their moral outrage over Russia鈥檚 invasion of Ukraine is unprecedented.聽

The closest historical parallel is South Africa. The spawned in 1959 took decades to develop global support. 鈥淲e鈥檙e watching this shift [against Russia] unfold in days,鈥� says historian Zeb Larson. The pace of change, he says, is 鈥渟triking.鈥� More recent grassroots sanctions movements, such as the pro-Palestinian 鈥渂oycott, divestment, sanctions鈥� and fossil fuel divestment campaigns, have also been years in the making.

We saw a similar moment of worldwide umbrage and empathy after the 9/11 attacks. 鈥淲e are all Americans,鈥� the French newspaper Le Monde wrote in a Sept. 12, 2001, headline. History shows us, Dr. Larson says, 鈥渃onspicuous violence drives moral outrage more than anything.鈥�

To some, Russia鈥檚 invasion also smacks of a bullying, colonial mentality. In a widely shared speech, Kenya鈥檚 ambassador to the United Nations, Martin Kimani, described Russia鈥檚 violation of territorial integrity as

Will this international shunning be effective or endure? It鈥檚 unclear. But it鈥檚 unlikely that Russia鈥檚 risk assessment included this scale of moral clarity and solidarity.聽

Also likely unforeseen: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy鈥檚 open defiance. 鈥�. It鈥檚 even more breathtaking when that courage is both moral and physical,鈥� writes conservative columnist David French. 鈥淸Mr. Zelenskyy鈥檚] not just speaking against evil, he鈥檚 quite literally standing against evil.鈥�

Apparently, many around the world have found that courage inspiring, and are taking steps to support it.聽