Thread by @Krawatzek

Young people in #Russia, beyond our biased circles of friends, have turned into a black box for (Western) researchers. In @NationalitiesP @Nina_Friess & myself interpret focus groups from 2019, several surveys, films & literature to assess what young people make of World War II

We observe significant overlap btw what young people think ab victory in World War II #ДеньПобеды & prevailing political discourse. Still, there is controversy around the regime’s abuse of history, the role of Stalin & how to remember (or not) violence against civilians.

The focus groups reveal just how much the average young #Russian, regime supportive or in opposition, agrees that the war victory must be honoured by future generations. #ДеньПобеды should be celebrated, even if young people criticise the fuss that is made around it.

The memory of war in #Russia is purified. Despite an awareness for the irreparable human losses, the prevailing war narrative among young people centres on the end of the conflict & the mythical freedom of the post-war years (when Stalin was still in power).

Memory of the Stalinist terror has become depersonalised, ie void of any perpetrators. Regime supportive young people also express admiration for Stalin’s leadership style, whereas only some regime-critical young people argued he was a tyrant.

There is very little desire to critically assess the Red Army’s actions. Violence is either denied, “it would have been stopped by our commanders”) or relativized (“what the Germans did was worse”).

The article thinks ab narratives emanating from focus groups in the context of historical narratives offered in the cultural realm. Data was generated way before anyone imagined the atrocities of #RussiaUkraineWar, but it might help to understand the world Russians live in.

Our article shows just how existential the historical framing of the #RussiaUkraineWar is for #Russia. If the Kremlin were to admit violence against civilians
now, it would at the same time undermine its very foundations.

The text is #OpenAccess thanks to @ZOiS_Berlin. Thanks @jpaulgoode for accompanying the journey all the way to publication doi.org/10.1017/nps.20…