On the eve of the BRICS summit in South Africa last month, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov slammed the “colonial and racist manners” of “Western elites,” who exploit resource-rich countries to pursue goals that “do not reflect the aspirations of all mankind.” Russia, in contrast, stands for “strengthening” and “supporting” Africa, he wrote.

The image of Moscow as a friend of Africa clashes with the persistent issue of racism inside Russia, where pervasive everyday discrimination is often punctuated by extreme acts of violence such as Ndjelassili’s murder.

In the most recent 2020 poll released by the independent Levada Center pollster, 28% of Russians did not believe Africans should be allowed into the country, down from 30% in the year before. Just 4% of respondents said they were ready to be friends or work colleagues with Africans.