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The Kremlin's Academic Crackdown: A War on Youthful Pride in Russian Education and Culture

Over the past 2 years in Europe, there has been a rise in authoritarian regimes repressing a more free outlook on education. Viktor Orban, the Prime Minister of Hungary, recently declared that the state would take back control of virtually every university in the country. These state controls limit young students' freedom of speech, and thinking with a more human rights, and liberal perspective that could create political opposition. Hungarians protested, and the government clamped down even harder. A similar pattern can be found within a soviet old guard, Lukashenko in Belarus. Whose brazen and fraudulent actions have not simmered while staring down the barrel of angry Belarussian protesters who sought greater election reform. In the midst of cataclysmic elections, Russia in the past few weeks has followed suit. The Kremlin, in light of recent protests pertaining to Alexi Navalny, has directed its anger towards some of the most prestigious universities and media outlets in the country. Repressing a more free thought education, these crackdowns cause the erasure of a rising culture, and directly affect the Republic of Tatarstan.

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source: gay times


A potential motive behind Russia's recent hard ball policies are to calm the beast of revolution that has gained traction, the near overthrowing of Lukashenko and Russia’s recognition of the Belarus elections provide a critical example. An example of toppling a dictator could resonate in the Russian people, motivated to rebel or push for further free thinking or even a new government, which would be unwanted by Putin, according to Oleg Chupryna of the LSE in the UK. Their deep cultural roots tied to better education however, Russia could dig up and eliminate. Shifting back towards absolute state controlled education. A fear which Russian secondary students find quite paralyzing.


Background on the development of Russian Education


These recent events pertaining to education could mark a shift in the entire culture of all educational institutions in Russia if these authoritarian style policies become relentless. There is a danger in this shift systemically, because the education system of Russia has gone far due to the wake of more progressivist reform dating back to Michail Gorbechev's term in the late 80s, and early 90s. Perestroika, economic structural reforms of the Soviet Union, instituted in 1986 included better vocational training in general education, and a plan to integrate the secondary school system into a reforming society. “At first, Universal education for youth was limited to 9 years of education with subsequent secondary education and vocational tracks broken up” according to Britannica. Then there was an important education reform movement that supported education, based on cooperation rather than reverting to the old, dogmatic, and authoritarian principles of collective education which arose during the Stalin Period. The reform movement received their wishes.


These reformers attested to an ideology of individualized learning that emphasized creativity. Also, teaching programs would be made more flexible even covering topics of self government, in an attempt to “democratize” the Soviet Union. The State Education Committee accepted some of the proposals and granted universities greater autonomy. This was a turning point where an originally authoritarian institution accepted a more liberal, and what was considered as a Western outlook on education. This allowed a culture of critical media and more information to come into play Russian youth in the 2000s.


The academic crackdowns in Russia, and what they mean for youth


The news of Russia's move to limit more free university policies is just a piece in the intricate puzzle to extirpate liberalist ideals in Russia. 4 students who were intimidated by the government in order to dissuade them from attending a protest on the mistreatment of Alexy Navalny, who is a fervent opposition leader with the support to challenge Putin’s power. Unfortunately he is in prison. Yet his legacy of change carries on. These four students, 2 men and 2 women, were enrolled in a liberal university for higher economics and were arrested after crafting a video that pleaded to other students to resist intimidation by the Kremlin and protest against the oppression. “The Kremlin has also started to stigmatize independent media that report on protests of the government, calling them “foreign agents'' that perpetuate subversion.” states The Economist. The bodies of the Kremlin are also clamping down on social media to prevent criticism of the regime.


Ironically, Putin's supportive base during the 2010s elections were the Youth, now they are at war with him. They have an advantage towards mobilization: time. Something a reluctant Putin is running out of.


How these Policies will Affect the Academics of Tatarstan


First off, Tatarstan is a republic located in central Russia that sits on the Volga River Basin, it is currently 500 miles away from moscow. Its capital, Kazan, is a city that booms of economic prosperity and culture. Its main economic activity consists of petroleum production, and more recently, the chemical industry. It is a fine republic with its own culture derived from the tatar and bulgar people, who were originally Native to the area. Kazan hosts one of the most prestigious universities in all of Russia; The Kazan Federal University. Britannica adds “they are a republic with a derivation of separatist sentiments dating back to 1552 which marked the republic’s annexation after a famous battle.” In the 90s, Tatarstan was reluctant to join the Russian Federation after the Soviet Union’s demise in 1991. They have their own government separate but associated with the Main Russian Kremlin.


Tatarstan has a unique culture which is embodied within the architecture and of democratic influence when focusing on its libraries and museums. They declare themselves a democratic state according to their constitution. But there is a more important narrative at play here. Kazan Federal university and all other Universities in Tatarstan are subject to Russian Federal law. If the government continues to bemoan and prohibit free and individualized thinking, then this will also lead to the repression of culture.


Understanding culture is vital in the promotion of an equal and free society on every count. Authoritarian regimes that subject students to one line of thinking prevent them from discovering who they are and how they feel. Fundamental culture allows for individuals and groups to discover their identities and define their environments around them in a meaningful way. According to the American Association of Sociology, if students are unable to define their own educational identity, then educational equality can never be achieved, when oppressive systems are constantly pushing a predetermined narrative of thinking. A more liberal Tatarstan’s students would face disaster if the main Kremlin forced a restrictive educational mandate.



The Fight For Equal Education


Education is often seen as a privilege in today's world, it always has been. That must change, the people of Tatarstan might be the next victims of a paralyzing and unfathomable edict that is the deprivation of a free education. A narrative that has existed in many oppressive regimes throughout history. Putin also has only given world media further reason to believe that a once more free thinking Russia is on the chopping block. There is no ability to empathize with the Kremlin. There is a silver lining behind the recent repression of education. Parliamentary elections are to occur in november of 2021, and a presidential one to be held in 2024. There is time for the youth to mobilize and support the next to-be strong opposition leader in the election cycle, a lot can change in two very different directions for Russia. The youth will hopefully take the reins, and you, the reader, can help.


Certain countries enjoy the full privilege of freedom of speech, distribution of information, and for the most part encouraged individualized thinking (ex. bar CRT in the US, for now). Let this article be a poignant message not to take these freedoms for granted. The institution that we rely on for our future, we mechanically walk through school doors every day, to learn and better the world. Educational freedom should be defined as a right, not a societal privilege. Not everyone, even in the most liberal, or “free” countries have access to most freedoms. But privileged individuals do, and they can help. Ways to challenge the repression of education across the globe, educate yourself on what's happening, not limited to your own country, and analyze the different viewpoints pertaining to large scale events, empathize, and understand the consequences of actions. Of course, donate to organizations that support freedom of education, which is crucial in order to lead this world towards greater equality and higher understanding of each other.


How to help:


https://www.thefire.org/ an organization to donate to, or join that fights for equal education opportunities, or just learn more about the issue of restriction on education


https://www.unicef.org/child-rights-convention/convention-text - learn more about child rights in education and child rights in general on a global scale


https://en.unesco.org/themes/right-to-education/state-obligations - learn more about educational rights defined by UNESCO, and how to learn and apply oneself to fight against the deprivation of said rights


Sources:


“Get them while they're young”. The Economist, vol. 440 Number 9261, September 4th-10th, pp. 73.




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