Irina Ratushinskaya was a Russian poet and dissident born on March 4, 1954, in Odessa, Ukraine. She became known for her powerful poetry that often addressed themes of freedom and human rights. Ratushinskaya was a prominent figure in the Soviet dissident movement, advocating for political reform and the release of political prisoners. In 1983, she was arrested for her activism and sentenced to seven years in a labor camp. During her imprisonment, she continued to write poetry, which was smuggled out and published internationally. Ratushinskaya was released in 1986 and later emigrated to the United States, where she continued her literary and advocacy work until her death on July 5, 2017.