CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Editor's Note: WCNC Charlotte has anonymized the person interviewed in this story at his request, to protect loved ones still in Russia.
It’s been a month since Russia invaded Ukraine leading to devastation, bloodshed, and millions of Ukrainians fleeing their country. However, the war is causing some Russians who are against the war to also leave their own homes.
One such family chose to flee their home country. They are now hoping to find freedom in Charlotte.
"Pain, I’m broken, I feel discouraged. This war is not what it used to mean to me before," said Anton, speaking through immigration activist and translator Kateryna Panova.
Anton fled Russia with his wife and 1-year-old son after speaking out against the war.
“We have a country that is so close that is being bombed and human lives are being taken away," he said.
It was only after doing some digging online that Anton says he saw what was truly taking place in Ukraine.
"His position was to rally his friends and Instagram subscribers in Russia about what started as a war and not a special operation like the Russian propaganda would tell you," said Panova.
It wasn’t too long before the police came looking for him. Anton said someone started posting inquiries about him online, and his local police force called him to ask him in to their precinct.
He was scared because the Russian parliament passed a law that could put someone in jail for up to 15 years for spreading what it is calling "misinformation" about the war in Ukraine.
"What he was doing was trying to get to the truth and the bottom of it. So whoever spread that type of misinformation can go to jail for a long time -- just for spreading posts on social media," said Panova.
So he took his family and left.
“We took some money, a suitcase and we fled," he said.
The journey took Anton and his family from Turkey to Mexico City, and then to the U.S. Now, he waits for an immigration judge to decide his fate.
“I don’t feel better, but I understand that here I won’t be judged or arrested for my political views," he said.
Anton hopes his family is granted political asylum so they can stay here.
Contact Jesse Pierre at jpierrepet@wcnc.com or follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
