THE SOVIET NATIONALITIES

STALIN’S NATIONALITIES POLICY  Central control over nationalities  Stalin Constitution, 1936, granted rights on paper  But Stalin’s actions actually limited national autonomy  Sblizhenie: drawing nationalities closer together – but under Russian domination USSR – Socialist Fatherland of Laborers of All Nations

THE SOVIET NATIONALITIES STALIN’S NATIONALITIES POLICY  Entire nationalities targeted as enemies of state  Included deportations of entire groups  Exploited Russian nationalism (chauvinism)  Portrayed Soviet Union as heir to Russian Empire

THE SOVIET NATIONALITIES NATIONALITIES POLICY UNDER KHRUSHCHEV  Harshest policies toward nationalities ended  But policy of integration continued: SLIIANIE - fusion  De-emphasized Russians’ leading role  Toleration of national revival  But increasing Russian settlement in national regions

THE SOVIET NATIONALITIES NATIONALITIES POLICY UNDER BREZHNEV  Integration of nationalities not really being accomplished  Russian population declining, Muslim & Asian peoples increasing  Attempts to use Russian language to achieve integration not successful

THE SOVIET NATIONALITIES NATIONALITIES POLICY UNDER BREZHNEV  Russians dominated in high levels of Soviet system & Party  Led to rise of national dissent movements Demanded national rights within context of human rights  Brezhnev dropped emphasis on sliianie – but continued to insist on sblizhenie

THE SOVIET NATIONALITIES NATIONALITIES UNDER GORBACHEV  Greater expression of desire for autonomy & even independence Movement spearheaded by Baltic republics  Ethnic unrest in Caucasus & Central Asia  Russian predominance continued to decline – now 50%  Increasing tendency on part of nationalities to assert rights, rejection of federated state