Who are the Soviet dissidents? What is their background, what segments of Soviet society are they drawn from, what are their personal characteristics? To answer these questions, we must look not only at the small group of prominent activists but at the larger number of individuals who have in some way expressed support for them, particularly by putting their names to various petitions and open letters on behalf of the dissidents and their causes. The first and most striking feature most of these people have in common is their education. Nearly all are university educated, or the equivalent, and work in the professions, or are fringe members of the educated elite, such as aspiring poets and university dropouts. The rare petition signers who identify themselves as “workers” stand out vividly as exceptions to the rule. Andrei Amalrik, examining the social background of his fellow dissidents, found that of the 738 people who signed petitions and protests against the Ginzburg–Galanskov trial in 1968, workers numbered 6 percent; the rest were academics, people in the arts, professionals, or students.