On August 20, 1968, the Soviet Union and its Warsaw Pact allies invaded Czechoslovakia to crush its “socialism with a human face.” The Soviet government declared that its own citizens unanimously supported the move. As poet Natalya Gorbanevskaya observed, “to cleanse [their] conscience” and “atone for…the historical guilt of [their] people,” dissenters from this official proclamation felt obliged to voice their opposition. “If even one person doesn’t approve of the ‘fraternal assistance’ [of the USSR],” she continued, “then the approval stops being unanimous.”  

Five days later, eight dissidents gathered on Red Square to unfold homemade banners supporting the Czechs. Imitating activists in the American civil rights movement, they intended to stage a “sit-down demonstration” but almost immediately were attacked by disguised KGB agents shouting, “They’re all Yids!” and “Beat the anti-Soviets!” Within minutes three cars pulled up. Forced inside, the dissidents were hauled off to the police station. 

Shortly before the invasion, author Anatoly Marchenko, who guessed from Soviet news reports what would happen, circulated an open letter addressed to editors of Soviet,