Привет.

Hello everyone. I'm Kevin, a mere a first year Russian student in Olympia Washington. I'll be doing some more Russian work this summer in Indiana, and then heading to Moscow come September. I have been worried lateley about violence, however. I have read many articles explaining the increasing Neo-Nazi problem in Moscow. Over half of the world's Neo-Nazis are in Russia! Many people of African or Asian appearance have been targeted in random attacks, sometimes proving lethal. A study abroad program my friend participated in a few years ago said there was a Mexican American student in her group. She said he would often recieve catcalls and sometimes outright threats in public, as many people mistook him for a Chechen.

Of course I can't forget that many places in America have similar issues with racism, but here you can usually count on not being physically assaulted for racial reasons.

I guess what I am asking is how do people keep themselves safe? What are behaviors that would insight this kind of violence? I am myself white, but still an America. Are there areas of Moscow that are worse than other? Like, a "no-go" zone? I will be staying near остановка метро "Выхино". Is there anything specific about this area I should know?