To Protest #RussiaUkraineWar Closing, 600 Pound Activist Handcuffs Himself to the Doors of a Moscow McDonalds

A Russian pianist who happens to weigh 594 pounds, chained himself to the door of a McDonald's, reports Russian government news website RT.COM. "After spending 30 years preaching people should be accepted for who they are, the US withdraws restaurants like McDonald's from Moscow," he protested.

Russian pianist Luka Safronov, son of prominent Russian artist Nikas Safronov, handcuffed himself to the doors of a McDonald's restaurant in Moscow on Sunday to protest the company's decision to withdraw from the country in light of the ongoing military conflict in Ukraine.

Safronov, who is a body positivity activist and weighs over 270 kilograms said that he doesn't want to change his lifestyle and accused America of spending the last 30 years getting Russian people hooked on McDonald's and preaching that people can be accepted for who they are, no matter how big they are, only to take it all away and force people to change their habits. He said that the sanctions against Russia are being aimed at regular people like him.

. The original story may be viewed here. It includes a video of Moscow police apparently arresting Safronov.

Separately, a protestor somehow intruded on the stage of the main Russian State Television newscast, and held up a "No War" protest banner for viewers to see. Moscow has carefully controlled how the conflict appears to the Russian public, so this is somewhat shocking. "A lady with a NO WAR poster just ran on stage during a live broadcast of Russia's Channel One state TV."