National Identity, National Minorities, and the Politics of Historical Memory
 

Tuesday, April 8, 2025

12:30 pm – 2:30 pm EDT/GMT-4 

Olin Humanities, Room 303

Memory-Studies Talk Series: Elise Giuliano

This talk discusses Dr Giuliano's current research about discourse among ethnic minority populations in Russia’s regions and how to think about the subjectivity and identity of ethnic minorities in multi-ethnic states. Following the end of communist rule in eastern Europe in 1989, most of the new nation-states dedicated themselves to reconstructing a history that viewed Soviet domination following WWII as a departure from their nation’s natural democratic path. Leaders in the post-Soviet states that emerged from the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 took a more differentiated approach, especially with regard to the recent Soviet past. In Ukraine, especially since Russia’s invasion in 2022, public memory about Soviet history has become more urgent and politicized. This talk will consider what varied interpretations of critical historical episodes mean for the attempt to define a coherent nation-state and discuss how citizens’ lived experiences and personal family histories interact with attempts by political authorities to define a common public memory.

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For more information, call 845-758-6822, or e-mail [email protected]
Download File: Giuliano.pdf