–  The Commissioner on Human Rights for the Russian Federation

–  The Foundation of the first President of Russia, B. N. Yeltsin

–  The State Archive of the Russian Federation

–  The Institute of Scientific Information for the Social Sciences, RAS

–  The “Russian Political Encyclopedia” Publishing House

--  “Memorial” Historical, Educational and Human Rights Charitable Society

 

–        Deutsches Historisches Institut, Moskau

-         Centre franco-russe de recherche en sciences humaines et sociales de Moscou

–        The Academy of National Economy under the RF Government

–        The FSB Academy of the Russian Federation

–        The Iurii Levada Analytical Centre

–        Houston University Business School (USA)

–        Warsaw University (Poland)

–        The All-Russian Archival Science and Records Management Research Institute (Russia)

–        Higher School of Economics (Russia)

–        Harvard University (USA)

–        Deutsches Historisches Institut, Moskau (Russia)

–        State Archive of the Russian Federation

–        Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace, Stanford University (USA)

–       The journal “Fatherland Notes” (Russia) – (“Otechestvennye zapiski”)

–        The journal “The Art of the Cinema” (Russia) – (“Iskusstvo Kino”)

–        Yale University Press (USA)

–        Indiana University (USA)

–        Institut für Osteuropäische Geschichte und Landeskunde, Tübingen University (Germany)

–        Institute of General History, RAS (Russia)

–        Institute of European Cultures, RGGU (Russia)

–        Institute of History and Archaeology, Ural Branch, RAS (Russia)

–        Institute of History, Siberian Branch, RAS (Russia)

–        Institute of History, National Academy of Sciences (Ukraine)

–        Institute of Russian History, RAS (Russia)

–        Institute of Slavic Studies, RAS (Russia)

–        Institute of Economics, RAS (Russia)

–        Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology, RAS (Russia)

–        University of California at Berkeley (USA)

–        University of California at Santa Barbara (USA)

–        Capital University, Columbus (USA)

–        Cambridge University (United Kingdom)

–        Manchester University (United Kingdom)

–        Moscow State Institute of International Relations attached to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MGIMO) (Russia)

–        Moscow State Lomonosov University (Departments of Modern and Contemporary History, School of Public Administration, History Faculty) (Russia)

–        “Memorial” Historical, Educational and Human Rights Charitable Society (Russia)

–        University of Michigan (USA)

–        Moscow Higher School of Social and Economic Sciences (Russia)

–        Scientific information and education centre “Memorial” (Russia)

–        National Archive of the Republic of Belarus

–        Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS) Paris (France)

–        University of Naples (Italy)

–        Bundesstiftung zur Aufarbeitung der SED-Diktatur, Berlin (Germany)

–        Scientific Research Institute for the Humanities attached to the Government of the Republic of Mordovia, Saransk (Russian Federation)

–        New Economic School (Russia)

–        Novosibirsk State University (Russia)

–        Penza State Belinskii Pedagogical University (Russia)

–        Perm State Technical University (Russia)

–        Rutgers University (USA)

–        Russian State University for the Humanities (Russia)

–        Russian State University for the Social Sciences (Russia)

–        Russian Academy of Management attached to the President of the RF (Russia)

–        Russian Academy of Arts (Russia)

–        Russian School of Economics (Russia)

–        St Petersburg State University for Economics and Finance (Russia)

–        University of St Gallen (Switzerland)

–        Institute for Social Studies and Humanities of the Kabardino-Balkar State University (Russian Federation)

–        Stanford University, California (USA)

–        Tambov State Technical University (Russia)

–        Tokyo University (Japan)

–        Friedrich Schiller University, Jena (Germany)

–        University of East London (United Kingdom)

–        University of Valenciennes (France)

–        University of Hannover (Germany)

–        University of Delaware (USA)

–        University of Düsseldorf (Germany)

–        Lawrence University, Wisconsin (USA)

–        University of New York (USA)

–        University of Paris 1, Panthéon-Sorbonne (France)

–        University of Rome II (Italy)

–        Temple University (USA)

–        University of Toronto (Canada)

–        University of South Carolina (USA)

–        Warwick University (United Kingdom)

–        Ural State Pedagogical University, Ekaterinburg (Russia)

–        Gramsci Institute Foundation, Rome (Italy)

–        Foundation for the Buchenwald and Dora-Mittelbau Museum Complex (Germany)

–        Centre franco-russe de recherche en sciences humaines et sociales de Moscou

–        Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies (The Netherlands) 

–        Centre for the Preservation of Staatsicherheit documents of the GDR (Germany)

–        Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies, Harvard University (USA)

–        Centre for the Study of the Contemporary History of Russia and Political Science in the Institute of Russian History, RAS (Russia)

–        Centre d"études des mondes russe, caucasien et centre-européen (CERCEC) à l"École des hautes études en sciences sociales (France)

–        Slavic Research Center, Hokkaido University, Sapporo (Japan)

–        Chicago University (USA)

–        School for Higher Social Research (France)

 

The Foundation of the first President of Russia, B. N. Yeltsin

 

Visa support:

Centre franco-russe de recherche en sciences humaines et sociales de Moscou

–    All-Russia State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company (VGTRK)

–  ITAR-TASS News Agency

–  RIA-Novosti News Agency

–  Radio Station “Radio Rossii”

–  Radio Station “Ekho Moskvy”

–  Newspaper “Nezavisimaia Gazeta”

–  Newspaper “Novaia Gazeta”

–  Journal “New Times”

–  Journal “Ogonek”

–  Journal “Rodina”

 

– Drozdov A. A. (Executive Director of the Foundation of the first President of Russia, B. N. Yeltsin);

–  Lukin V. P. (Commissioner on Human Rights in the Russian Federation);

–  Mironenko S. V. (Director of the State Archive of the Russian Federation);

– Pivovarov Iu. S. (Academician, Russian Academy of Sciences, Director of the Institute of Scientific Information for the Social Sciences, RAS);

– Pikhoia R. G. (Head of Department, Russian Academy of Public Administration);

– Roginskii A. B. (Chairman of the Management Board of the International Historical, Educational and Human Rights Charitable Society “Memorial”;

–   Sorokin A. K. (General Director of the “Russian Political Encyclopedia” Publishing House;

–   Tishkov, V. A. (Academician, Russian Academy of Sciences, Director of the Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology, RAS);

– Khlevniuk O. V. (Chief Specialist, State Archive of the Russian Federation)

 

Conference dates: 5-7 December 2008.

Conference location: Moscow, Russia, Renaissance Olympic Penta Hotel

Working languages: Russian, English

 

General Description and Scientific Aims of the Conference:

Leading historical specialists in the history of the Stalinist period from Russia, Europe, the USA, Canada and Japan will be taking part in this conference, which will examine the scientific conceptualisation of the problems of Stalinism and the interaction between scientific historiography and ordinary people’s historical awareness in contemporary Russia.

Political changes in Russia and the resulting partial opening of the archives have made possible substantial progress in the study of the Stalinist period.

At the same time the scientific historiography of Stalinism has thrown up a number of controversial problems which demand discussion.

The gap between the scientific viewpoint, and the everyday understanding of Stalinism in the public mind is substantial, and appears to be widening.

In Russia’s mass media and in numerous pseudo-historical publications, the concepts of the Short Course History of the VKP(b) are being revived, or at best, the half-baked, unconvincing arguments of Khrushchev’s de-Stalinisation are being repeated.

Unfortunately, when overlaid upon contemporary internal and external political situations, pro-Stalinist propaganda clichés sound very effective.

Recipes for a Russian renaissance through authoritarian modernisation or even a dictatorship are bring peddled, together with propaganda for the historical justification of violence, millions of victims and cleansing through social purges.

This socio-political context undoubtedly makes the peculiar scientific problems of history very relevant to the present day, and calls for combined action on the part of responsible historians and social scientists.

Conferences and debates are a traditional and effective way of achieving such combined action and furthering the development of scientific knowledge.

It is planned to devote the work of the conference “Studying the History of Stalinism: Achievements and Current Problems” to key (primarily conceptual) problems of the history of the Stalinist era.

The work of the conference will be organised into six main sections: the institutions and methods of dictatorship; the political economy of Stalinism; life under a dictatorship (sociocultural aspects); nationalities policies and the ethnic factor; international relations and the second world war; Stalinism and contemporary social consciousness.

For each of these sections it is important to establish:

a) the level of scientific knowledge already attained - by this we mean the gist of the received wisdom on major topics and treatments, and the existence of sources and “archival discoveries” which have major significance, and may even cause us to change our previous views on certain problems; and

b) the existence of controversial questions, debates and lacunae in historical source materials. Taken all together, discussion of these problems will allow us to establish the general state of research on the phenomenon of Stalinism, the presence of generally agreed and also debatable positions, and prospects for the further development of scientific historiography.

Plenary Sessions

 

 

 

Section plenaries

 

We plan to concentrate the work of the section on the discussion of four problem areas. The first is contemporary ideas about Stalin’s revolution and dictatorship, including: social support and social resistance to forced collectivisation and industrialisation; the relationship between politics and economics in the destruction of NEP; and the influence of ideological factors.

The second is the praxis of emergency rule; the role and scope of the Terror; the interaction of the institutions of dictatorship (the party, government departments and punitive agencies); and the interrelationship of political radicalism and “moderation”.

The third is the Stalin factor in the development of dictatorship: the dictator’s role and logic in the determination of tactics and strategies for action; theories of “weak dictatorship” (the influence of his colleagues, the regions, departmental pressure and so on); “inevitability” and the consequences of Stalin’s policies.

The fourth is a comparative analysis of Stalin’s dictatorship in the context of the development of European history in the 1930s and 1940s as a whole, and its totalitarian component in particular.

Section leaders: Oleg Khlevniuk (State Archive, RF), Yoram Gorlizki (Manchester University, UK).

 

 

Section 2. Stalin’s international policies

 

The work of this section is based on three thematic and chronological blocs, the first of which is devoted to the views of the Bolshevik leaders, mainly Stalin and his associates, on international problems, and on relations between Soviet Russia and its neighbours in the first post-war decade.

The second bloc examines Stalin’s foreign policy and its relationship to the international communist movement in the face of the growing threat from Germany and Japan.

The final bloc is devoted to the international policies of late Stalinism, key aspects of relations between the USSR and foreign countries, their causes, and the key events of the initial period of the “cold war”.

Section leaders: Andrea Graziosi (University of Naples, Italy), Silvio Pons (University of Rome, Italy), Aleksander Vatlin (Moscow State University, Russia), Mark Kramer (Harvard University, USA).

 

 

The social history of Stalinism, like any other form of social history, is a multi-dimensional space. It is of course impossible to convey the full variety of its problem areas within the confines of one day’s work in a conference section. Therefore in planning the work of our section we have followed one guiding principle - to achieve the overall aim of the conference – the systematic understanding of the phenomenon of Stalinism in its various manifestations.

The work of the section is devoted to the following problems:

1. The Soviet socium from the 1920s to the 1950s

2. The symbols and rituals of Stalinism

3. Soviet life: spaces and practices

The social and sociocultural history of Stalinism is a relatively new subject, and it is in a state of active development. The main tendency of research in the last 10-15 years has been the segmentation of the research field, which encompasses the study of many specific aspects: the history of everyday life, gender history, workers’ history, the history of political culture and others.

Another peculiarity of the study of the history of Stalinism is its chronological unevenness, where the main mass of research work has been done on the 1920s and 1930s, while the period of late Stalinism has only relatively recently attracted the attention of historians.

Based on the separate researches and results of this genuinely huge analytical work, we are called upon to create a unified whole – a history of Stalinism. This conference can and must be an important step in that direction.

Section leaders: Elena Zubkova (Institute of Russian History, RAS, Moscow), Donald Filzer (University of East London)

 

 

The work of this section reflects economic aspects of Stalinism. It consists of three subsections. The first examines the mechanisms of Stalinist economics and their links with the party and the politics of repression, as implemented under Stalin’s leadership. The second subsection concentrates on the various dimensions of Stalin’s industrialisation, including the role of the GULAG. The subject of the third subsection is Stalin’s agrarian policy, including an examination of its social basis; the “Bukharin alternative”; the processes of collectivisation; and the famines in the Soviet countryside of 1932/33.

Section leaders: Leonid Borodkin (MGU) and Paul Gregory (Houston University, USA)

 

 

The work of the section will concentrate on three problem areas. The first is modern perceptions of the nature of a multi-ethnic state: the continuity between the Russian empire and the USSR, the peculiarities of the Soviet empire, the role of ethno-social constructivism and innovation, archaism and utopianism – in Stalin’s empire building, and the role and logic of the “theoretician” on ethnic questions in the determination of strategies and tactics for action.

The second concerns citizenship and ethnicity in Stalin’s empire, emergency and modernising practices, their interrelation and interaction, and their influence on the formation of the identity of the modern citizen.

The third area concerns aspects of primary source materials and historiography: new readings and new approaches.

Section leaders: Tamara Krasovitskaia (Institute of Russian History, RAS, Russia), Yuri Slezkine (Berkeley, USA).

 

In this section we plan to concentrate on the discussion of three problem areas:

The most important of these is the formation of the cultural memory of Stalinism. The discussion should be not so much about the cataloguing and general evaluation of today’s memories of political repression, but rather: what historical, social and cultural function these instances of memory should serve today? An important question in connection with this is the possibilities and limitations of the creation of virtual memory, its contemporary language and its means of delivery. In this context we should state that it is essential to create an effective cultural memory which addresses not only the older generation (witnesses and participants) but also the younger generation: what moral and ethical meaning should be conveyed by those elements of cultural memory such as monuments, symbols, rituals etc.

Another important aspect is the problem of our relationship to the legacy of Stalinism; the question must be asked – where is the boundary between propaganda and cultural legacy?; what should be preserved, and in what form, and what should disappear? Is it permissible today to pose the question of the universalisation of this memory throughout the whole postcommunist world? What is the place of the memory of Stalinism in Europe as a political and cultural phenomenon?

A second important problem area is concerned with the problems of the “politics of memory”. This section is devoted to problems of the functioning of memories about Stalin in the post soviet space, and in the countries of Eastern Europe. This necessitates a trans-generational analysis and the posing of the question: does there exist, in any form, a collective memory of Stalinism? How are the old myths about the Soviet past being revived? Or are they being replaced by a newer, much more aggressive mythology? Does a European memory of Stalinism exist?

One key question is: is it possible to form a national identity in Russia on the basis of the negative image of the Stalinist past?

The third problem area is the biographical aspect of the memory of Stalinism. In this context we should mention the view of the history of Stalinism through the images as witnessed by the chief actors of the period. The problem of the formation of these images, and the changes that they undergo in the minds of the public, is closely linked to the problems of memory.

Section leaders: Irina Shcherbakova (Memorial International, Russia), Arseny Roginskii (Memorial International, Russia), Sergei Mironenko (State Archive of the Russian Federation).

 

 

Plenary sessions

 

 

The organizing committee reserves the right to make modifications to the program if these become necessary.

 

Оргкомитет:

119180, Moscow, Bolshaia Polianka Street, No. 23, Building No. 3
E-mail: org@stalinizmu.net
Telephone: (+7-495) 334-8187