«In July 2025, Russia’s Supreme Court declared the so-called ‘International Satanist Movement’ an extremist organization and banned it nationwide. By autumn, police began actively searching for satanic symbolism in Russians’ social media accounts, issuing fines for posted images and even disrupting a cosplay festival. So far, at least seven fines and one arrest related to satanic symbols have been reported. One of those targeted was Aleksandr from the Lipetsk region. A local Center “E” officer found images on his social media page featuring the word “SATAN”, inverted crosses, pentagrams, and memes from the well-known public page ‘Suffering Middle Ages’. The court ruled that one of the memes — an image of a girl holding a horned creature resembling Baphomet, captioned ‘How women choose their husbands’ and ‘Mom, this is Sasha. He’s nice’ — constituted satanic symbolism. The meme originated from the artwork ‘The Favourite’ by contemporary American artist Omar Rayyan. Painted in 2010, the image has since gone viral online and inspired multiple meme adaptations. Aleksandr was fined under the new ban for distributing the symbolism of the ‘International Satanist Movement’. Under Russian law, displaying extremist symbols can lead to a fine of up to 2,000 rubles or arrest for up to 15 days, while repeat offenses may result in criminal charges. According to existing court rulings, satanic symbols include the inverted Christian cross, the pentagram, and depictions of Baphomet — an anthropomorphic figure typically shown with a goat or ram’s head. However, police can also issue reports for images merely associated with the banned movement, notes the legal group ‘First Department’ (listed as a ‘foreign agent’ in Russia). This is what happened with the artwork ‘The Favourite’, repurposed into memes».

“Suffering Middle Ages”: Where Russian Police Are Finding Satanism