Modern Russian motor community

Abstract

The paper is devoted the movement which has recently appeared in Russia among Russian motorbikers. Today Russia is facing real difficulties. We can observe the highest disproportion between the poor and the rich. The whole system is in a deep collapse; the legal system is almost destroyed. The level of corruption is very high. Whereas the state is losing control over huge problems, we can still observe civil society activities which are called «new solidarities». New cohesive groups of people are trying to replace the state in the spheres where it is weak. The study is based on the qualitative study of bikers and motorcyclists conducted by the teachers and students of Moscow State University (Faculty of Sociology) in September – December, 2013. The data include 150 face-to-face semi-structured interviews and observation in the most popular places of bikers and motorcyclists. The study was aimed at describing social portrait of motorcyclists, their reasons for solidarity, and the levels of involvement in the movement. The study finds that in the public mind there are lots of preconceptions about bikers; 150 researchers have changed their views about bikers from strictly negative to strictly positive. According to the author, the biker’s movement is not only social and cultural phenomenon but also a sign of civil society in Russia.