A viral stunt is not the same as resistance
Today, a Russian-immigrant couple climbed the Empire State Building in Manhattan, New York, displayed a pro-peace banner, and turned the moment into a public spectacle. They were later arrested and charged after the unauthorized climb (Luscombe, 2026). Many people online have romanticized this action as brave or inspiring. But we should ask: brave against whom?
It is easy to display anti-war slogans in a democratic country, where freedom of speech exists. It is much harder and riskier to confront the regime that actually started this war.
And while this event is being romanticized online, Ukraine is suffering again after Russian missile and drone attacks. Reuters reported that Kyiv is mourning after the deadliest Russian attack on the capital this year, with at least 30 civilians killed (Reuters, 2026a). On the same day, Russian overnight attacks killed and injured civilians in other Ukrainian regions, including Sumy and Kryvyi Rih (Reuters, 2026b). These examples are not unique. Every day, Russia bombs peaceful cities, towns, and villages across Ukraine, while Ukrainian heroes die at the front defending their homes and families against the aggressor. Every day, the Ukrainian nation goes through a series of tragedies and loses its best sons and daughters. Every day.
This is why the message does not feel powerful. It feels hypocritical. It feels like hype on the blood of innocent residents of Ukraine!
What makes it worse is how quickly this stunt is being turned into marketing: engagement, jokes, romantic content, and “peace” aesthetics. Meanwhile Ukrainian cities are being bombed while this is packaged as a viral love story. That is not solidarity; it is using war as content.
A performance abroad for cameras and for likes on Instagram will not stop the people from making decisions in the Kremlin. Russia is a highly authoritarian state, and viral “peace” content in New York or London or Madrid will not meaningfully pressure Putin’s regime and its elite. Anti-war slogans should be addressed first of all to those who have the power to end the war: the government, its oligarchs, its military leadership, and the system that continues its aggression against Ukraine. Putin will never stop killing Ukrainians because of romantic videos, aesthetic, or symbolic “peace” slogans performed safely abroad.
That is why this feels hypocritical. These actions are presented as brave, but they are not done in Moscow or Saint Petersburg, where the regime actually makes decisions. They do not challenge and do not try to challenge the system that bombs Ukrainian cities, occupies Ukrainian land, and kills civilians every day.
The world should be careful not to romanticize Russians abroad for symbolic gestures while Ukrainians are paying the real price of this war every day. Real anti-war action means supporting Ukraine, Ukrainian refugees and immigrants, Ukrainian culture, Ukrainian sovereignty, and especially the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the only force directly defending the world from Putin’s regime and Russia’s aggression.
Peace is not an aesthetic. Peace requires responsibility. Hype videos do not lead to peace.
REFERENCES
BBC News. (2026, July 2). Couple arrested after climbing Empire State Building [Video]. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/
CNBC. (2026, July 2). Russian couple arrested after climbing the Empire State Building [Video]. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/video/
Luscombe, R. (2026, July 2). Couple who staged apparent proposal atop Empire State Building faces slew of charges. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/
Reuters. (2026a, July 3). Rescuers scour rubble as Kyiv mourns deadliest Russian attack this year. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/
Reuters. (2026b, July 3). Russian attacks kill 4, injure 10 in Ukraine overnight, officials say. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/world/