Tin foil hats in schools: Russia's bizarre patriotic trend

The conflict in Ukraine has been ongoing for over two and a half years. During this period, Russian society is bombarded almost daily by propaganda messages about the threats the country is said to be facing. It seems that with each passing day of the conflict, the boundary of rationality and common sense in Russia is being increasingly stretched.

Consequently, the media is encouraging those who remained in the country after the outbreak of the war to engage in more extreme behaviours. A perfect example is the recently documented activities in Russian schools, where, under the guise of patriotism, children were dressed up as tanks and soldiers or asked to write poems in honour of the army fighting in Ukraine.

Nevertheless, Russian society is pushing the boundary of absurdity even further, resulting in a video shared online featuring what appears to be a few teachers from a rural school. According to the Russians, they were the victims of a prank that involved sending a letter to schools with an unusual task.

This turned out to be creating tin foil hats, which are characteristic of conspiracy theory enthusiasts. As we learn from a video online featuring a group of teachers, these hats are intended to be patriotic, symbolising readiness to defend the homeland against external enemies.

Making tin foil hats is not only an interesting and creative activity but also an important patriotic act, symbolising readiness to defend the homeland against external threats. Let our hat become a symbol of unity and resilience in the face of external challenges — say the women fooled by the prank in the video.

The appearance of such recordings online shows how susceptible Russian society is to propaganda. If the information that the women recorded are teachers is also true, it is evidence of the tremendous pressure and fear of dismissal prevailing in Russian education.