Born: 30 November 1983, Ukraine
Died: 19 January 2009
Country most active: Russia
Also known as: Анастасия Эдуардовна Бабурова, Анастасiя Едуардівна Бабурова
The following bio was written by Emma Rosen, author of On This Day She Made History: 366 Days With Women Who Shaped the World and This Day In Human Ingenuity & Discovery: 366 Days of Scientific Milestones with Women in the Spotlight, and has been republished with permission.
Anastasia Eduardivna Baburova was born on November 30, 1983, in Sevastopol and was a journalist and activist known for her work in antifascist and eco-anarchist movements. She held Ukrainian and Russian citizenship and was multilingual and proficient in English and French.
Baburova’s activism began when she witnessed an attack by neo-Nazis on a Korean student, inspiring her to become politically active. She participated in various movements and events, including organizing the “Anti-Capitalism-2008” festival and joining environmental camps like the “Keepers of the Rainbow.” She collaborated with anarcho-communist organization “Autonomous Action.”
In her journalistic career, she worked for “Izvestia” and “Novaya Gazeta,” writing about business, ecology, animal rights, law enforcement issues, and the antifascist movement.
She was fatally shot in Moscow on January 19, 2009, alongside human rights lawyer Stanislav Markelov, leading to protests against state repression. The suspects were members of a radical nationalist group, and one was sentenced to life imprisonment for their murders in 2011.