Josef Stalin – Communist Soviet Union

Nationalism

Persecuted Groups
Soviet leaders and authorities officially condemned nationalism and proclaimed internationalism,
including the right of nations and peoples to self-determination. This meant those in the USSR did
not necessarily see themselves as Russians, but rather as Communists, and the sought to spread
Communism to other nations.

While the Soviet Union did not practice "racial politics" and was supportive of self-determination
and rights of many minorities, it significantly marginalised people of certain ethnic groups
designated as "enemies of the people", and promoted a type of cultural genocide to assimilate these
groups into traditional Russian ways.

The USSR covers a huge expanse of land and within this, there is a vast array of ethnic groups. Stalin
had policies to exile many of these groups, especially where they spoke their own regional language
and brandished them as "traitors". Many of them were Siberia and Central Asia where they were
legally designated "special settlers", meaning that they were officially second-class citizens with few
rights.

Propaganda

Over the course of his rule Joseph Stalin ruthlessly used propaganda and terror to inspire loyalty in
the citizens of the USSR and to maintain absolute power within the communist party.

Stalin saw the role of propaganda as strengthening his own totalitarian regime. He believed all
mediums of communication: radio, television, newspapers, art, theatre and posters could be used to
further his aims. Education in the USSR also taught communist principles and glorified Stain’s
leadership. He honed a cult of personality with the USSR. This is whereby propaganda is used to
portray the image of an all wise, all knowing leader. Stalin was a master propagandist and knew how
to use media and propaganda to secure his power.

History was rewritten to cast Stalin as a hero of the November Revolution and Civil War. Street
names and cities, such as Stalingrad, were named after him. Statues and posters of him were
widespread. Music, art and poetry praised him as the “most learned of men” and the “fount of all
wisdom”.

Propaganda was further used to promote Stalin’s controversial policies of collectivisation and rapid
industrialisation. The story of Stakhanov, who allegedly mined 105 tonnes of coal in one shift,
appeared in Time magazine. He was lauded as a hero of the state and encouraged others to work
similarly hard for Stalin’s aims and success.

Fear and Control

One of the most famous aspects of Stalin’s rule was terror. This grew from his paranoia and his
desire to be a totalitarian leader who would not be challenged. Stalin believed that the country
needed to be united to be strong. He wanted the USSR to modernise quickly to catch up with other
countries in Europe and believed that unity and strength, with him as the leader was the only way to
achieve this. His reign of terror was to eradicate enemies of the state and to ensure unity within the
USSR, through fear.
 Josef Stalin – Communist Soviet Union
Stalin attempted collectivisation of all Russian farming. Farms were seized and taken by the state
and landowners were evicted from their land. The state police used brutal and deadly methods to
ensure farmers followed collectivisation, murdering whole villages who resisted. There were some
Russian peasants who burned their crops and slaughtered their animals in protest, rather than hand
it over to the state, but these people faced severe consequences. In the resulting famine, it is
estimated that anywhere between 7-11 million Russians died; Stalin confided in Winston Churchill in
1945 that he believed 10 million Russians to have died due to collectivisation.

Stalin had a police force who would protect the state and within this, there were secret police. The
NKVD would take charge of all law enforcement within the USSR. This included their involvement in
purges where Stalin removed anyone who was opposed to the regime. This included political
opponents, opponents within the military, the church, ethnic groups and any ordinary person who
spoke out against industrialisation or collectivisation. Purges took place throughout the 1930s but
the most significant was 1936-38 where it is estimated 1 million people were executed.

Stalin was paranoid that his position as General Secretary of the Communist Party would be
challenged by someone high up in the party. To avoid this happening, Stalin unleashed purges on
many popular or prominent leaders of the Communist Party. During the purges, many of these
people were put on ‘show trials’, where their guilt had already been decided. These trials were
meticulously planned and were a part of the propaganda machine, often charges were fabricated
but people were forced to admit to their guilt, and they were publicly executed to act as a warning
to other citizens.

These purges went a step further as Stalin unleashed brutality across Russia. The purges quickly
evolved into The Terror where individual areas were given ‘quotas’ for numbers of Russians to
arrest, many without ever having done anything wrong. Stalin himself personally oversaw a list of
12,000 Russian leader’s names, next to who he had decided their fate. Many people were sent to
Gulags, this was a system of forced labour camps throughout the USSR. Conditions in the camps
were brutal and prisoners could be forced to work up to 14 hours per day, often in extreme weather
with basic tools and limited safety equipment. Many people died of starvation, disease, or
exhaustion – others were simply executed. People in the Gulags were working on large-scale
construction, mining, and industrial projects. Some people were able to serve a term in a gulag and
then be release but many either died during their time there or were executed. It is estimated 4 to 6
million people were sent to Gulags.

Education and Children

Stalin taught children that they were children of Stalin first, and children of their parents second.
Children were encouraged to inform on their parents if parents had criticised the USSR or Stalin.
Education in the USSR was controlled by the state. In 1932, a very strict programme of discipline
was introduced by Stalin. Previously banned exams were reintroduced, and the government
dictated how subjects were taught. For instance, in History, Stalin’s relationship with Vladimir Lenin
in the 1917 March revolution was exaggerated.

Students were left in the dark on some issues as the government censored most things.
Furthermore, a new book called A Short History of the USSR was introduced, to be used in schools.
Schools had to display pictures of Stalin and he was portrayed as a hero.

Youth organisations known as Octobrists were set up outside of school for children between the
ages of 8 and 10 years old. The Pioneers were set up for 10 to 16-year-olds. Youths aged between 19
 Josef Stalin – Communist Soviet Union
and 23 joined the Komsomol. Children were taught how to be good communists and emphasis was
put on outdoor activities and clean living.