Word: rubenstein
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WHEN ASKED FOR his nationality at his 1978 trial, poet Alexander Ginzburg replied "prisoner." Almost any Russian could say the same and Joshua Rubenstein's Soviet Dissidents examines those who do. They are most often those who come to politics only out of necessity and in defense of personal freedom. They are artists, religious practitioners, displaced nationals and often they are the young. In a country whose older population remains depoliticized, frozen by memories of Stalin's official terror, they are the exceptions. They are the ones who believe that ideas cannot be murdered with bullets, imprisonment or exile...
...Rubenstein, New England director of Amnesty International, sets out to write a focused expose on the subject. He does not delve into the inner machinations of the Politburo, nor does he try to second-guess past and present policy-decisions. Instead, he tries to explore the roots and meaning of Soviet dissent; to show how the abuse of human rights actually affects those who do object, rebel and petition. With candid passion, Rubenstein masterfully intertwines the three major strands of Soviet dissident life--the historical, the personal and the legal--to create a three-dimmensional portrait of life under political...
...accustomed to an absence of freedom," writes one dissident in his memoirs and Rubenstein sets himself to disclosing Stalin's arctic gulags, what Solzhenitsyn called the "sewage disposal system." Over seven million more returned from these purgatories during Kruschev's "thaw". Many of the those prisoners went on to become cultural leaders and intellectuals, and thus, art and literature quickly became a barometer of freedom and provoked an intense and continual debate...
...paneling was removed at Rubenstein's request during last year's Commencement, to coincide with his 50th class reunion. He wanted a sign the works and was concerned about their condition...
When the wallboard was removed, damage was discovered. Rubenstein worked closely with Arthur Beale, head of conservation at the Fogg Museum of Art, to restore the paintings...