Despite her belief in the emergence of civil society, Alexeyeva is convinced a genuine civil society is not possible in a situation where poverty touches almost 80 per cent of the population: “People whose daily concern is to find means to buy clothes for their children and send them to school, have no time to think about civil rights.”
Ehkki Aleksejeva usub kodanikualgatuse tärkamisse, ei ole tõeline kodanikuühiskond tema sõnul siiski võimalik olukorras, kus vaesus puudutab ligi 80% elanikke. "Inimestel, kes peavad iga päev mõtlema, mille eest lastele riideid osta ja neid kooli saata, ei ole aega tegeleda kodanikuõigustega," märkis Aleksejeva.