A Russian Pub Owner, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and the Beauty of an Open Society

Life is complicated, but some principles are easy

Since 2018, I have had the amazing privilege of living in Prague, Czech Republic. This is not a perfect nation, no nation is, but it has an open, democratic society with civil rights. We were able to emigrate to the Czech Republic because it has a clear, and as far as we know, fairly applied immigration policy. Sitting in the heart of Central Europe, Prague is a diverse, cosmopolitan city, home to many immigrants, about ten percent of the population.

A two-minute walk from my front door is my local pub. It is owned by a Russian man in his late 30s. I wouldn’t say we’re friends, but we’ve known each other for over five years, starting from when I used to come to Prague speaking at academic conferences. We have talked a lot, mostly about craft beer and breweries.

The last two weeks, we have talked about Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. He is angry and disgusted by it. He told me last night that he saw what was coming and had left Russia over a decade ago to get away from Putin. He moved to England and then to Prague, where he now runs a small, independent business that serves his community. He renounces Putin’s aggressions, which hits him personally not only because he is Russian, but his girlfriend is Ukrainian.

Ukrainians are the largest immigrant group in the Czech Republic. The Czech government and the Czech people have offered…