Pastel commits risky faux-pas; outrage in local Russian community

Anne Arundel MD (GSP). This past weekend saw the local Russian community host its annual three-day Russian Festival, a much anticipated and a beloved event for the city. On-site at the local Orthodox parish, the festivities included traditional Russian dancing, gourmet delicacies and special teas and sweets, including pastries, pies, cakes and blondies, all for a low admission price of $2. It has grown in renown and prestige since it started in 1989, and local Russian Sergei Andreyevich, 6, said, “I waited all year to show the world the beauty of our culture. I will be dancing on the last day to show everyone the wondrous exoticism of the glorious Russian people.”

While the first two days went extraordinarily well, with several hundred visitors enjoying the festival, the fun took an ugly turn on the last day, with the arrival of Dr. Amar Pastel, famed embalmer for GSL Enterprises, from Akron Ohio. Pastel paid his admission fee and walked through the gates, into the tent, garbed in a big red Soviet hockey jersey, sporting the Communist party logo.

The music and dancing stopped, people stared, Pastel was oblivious and little Sergei began to cry. The festival was ostensibly ruined. The audacity and complete insensitivity of Pastel wearing such an item amongst the Russian Orthodox faithful filled the entire atmosphere with utter distaste. The Soviet communist government persecuted the Orthodox Church unmercifully for 60 years, systematically killing thousands of bishops, tens of thousands of priests and millions of faithful simply to eradicate religion, an essential tenet of Communism.

Interviews with the Russians were more telling than this reporter can describe.

Pavel Brushchenyov: Seeing that jersey made my blood boil. The “CCCP” represents the evil that befell my many ancestors who perished just for being Christian. My great-grandfather was killed in a gulag because he was a priest. Is that what this Indian clown is supporting by wearing such a thing? How horrid.

Tatyana Piorchevsky: He ruined the entire festival! Didn’t he know it was hosted by the Russian parish? Did he think we would embrace him for wearing evil letters that only remind us of the darkest time for the Russian people? He should read a *expletive* history book before he puts on such an awful shirt. He is a very, very bad man.

A local historian commented on the travesty saying, “this is basically the equivalent of the local synagogue hosting a German Jewish cultural festival and showing up with a swastika on your shirt. It is entirely inappropriate.

“However, not to exonerate him, but to perhaps explain his actions, Pastel probably just didn’t know what he was doing. It is amazing how many people are unfamiliar with the Soviet war crimes that killed more people in the 20^th Century than anything else.

“He likely thought that since modern-day Russia was borne out of the Soviet Union, that Russians would automatically embrace the Soviet Union. Such an interpretation would be categorically false and entirely wrong. All he would need to do is read a book and understand that. It only made matters worse that these were Russian Orthodox Christians.

He concluded thoughtfully, “there really is no excuse.”

Little Sergei at the moment when Pastel walked in with his most offensive shirt.