Word: stalinism
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...Last year, a new history textbook was adopted for schools, which makes mention of the repressions of the Stalin era, but also describes the leader as a "competent manager." The characterization in the book - written with the help of a historian from Putin's United Russia party - drew fierce criticism from historians in Russia and abroad. But perhaps the most blatant example of rewriting history yet came in August, when the city of Moscow unveiled an inscription to Stalin in the marble entryway of the Kurskaya Metro station. In giant letters, it reads: "Stalin raised us to be loyal...
...What's behind the move by the government to rehabilitate Stalin's image in the eyes of the public? Some opposition politicians believe it's tied to the United Russia party's efforts to solidify its power. "The state is hinting that Stalin's tactics are also part of its arsenal for controlling the country," says Sergei Mitrokhin, the leader of the opposition Yabloko party. The widespread sympathy toward Stalin, he adds, is also a result of the lingering impact of Soviet propaganda, which the Russian government never tried to erase from the public consciousness after communism fell. "All countries...
...everyone in the higher echelons of government has signed on to this official makeover of Stalin's image, though. On Oct. 30, the official day of mourning for the victims of Stalin's regime, President Dmitry Mevdedev said that Russia "must not allow those who destroyed their own people to be defended under the banner of restoring historical justice. ... There can be no justification for repressions." But his plea, issued in a video blog on the Kremlin website, largely fell on deaf ears. The blog posting reached nowhere near as many people as the Putin call-in show, which...
...party, the majority of the attendees were World War II veterans bred on Stalinist propaganda. But hundreds of younger people also sat in the auditorium or milled around the vestibule as the musicians performed. One of them, Vadim Kasimov, a secretary of the Union of Communist Youth, said that Stalin's legacy is one of his group's best tools for recruiting new members. "Young people, when they think of him at all, think of him as a strong leader, a vibrant personality, and what he stood for they often want to emulate," he says. (See TIME's City Guide...
...Whether or not young people follow in Stalin's footsteps, the government looks to be succeeding in dispelling some of the outrage felt by Russians toward his terror-filled reign. He may very well be remembered one day as a strong, competent leader who made some mistakes - and whose birthday will always call for a celebration...