Cold War Soviets: Individuals

Figure 1.--These are Soviet Young Pioneers on Red Square for a May Day celebration some time in the 1970s. Many describe the late-Soviet era aas a time of happy childhood who as a result of Perestroika and Glasnost suddenly found themslves in what seemed a totally different countries.

We are particularly interested in the expeiences of individuals. Russians readers have provided us us some infirmation, but we have not yet recieved detailed childhood experiences which for our website we find particularly important. There was a lovely program on PBS's POV series--'My Perestroika' (2011). The program followed the experiences of five Russian children who were children during the final decade of the Soviet Union and then their adjustment in the post-Soviet expeiment with democrracy and then President Putin's return to authoritarian rule. They were the last generation of Soviets schooled in the glories of socialism. And at the time they were interviewd they were in their 40s looking back to the time that yhey were children. They tell us that they were happy then. And then changes came that they could and adults could not have iagnined--neither did the CIA and academicians studying the Soviet Union. We hope to add additional entries, but the POV individuals are a fascinating start.

Unidentified Child Orator (about 1980)

The POV program 'My Peristroika' opens with school children praising an obviously aging General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev. One unidentified child orator thanks the Soviet leader for permitting them to live in 'the country of happy childhood' abd for guiding the struggle for world peace. Along with the young orator and his gushing praise, we see a line up of unflinchingly somber, dark-suited and unfashionably hatted Soviet aparatchiks waving in unison fro the dais -- a common site in Soviet newsreels. Chiling to us in the West, but not to the devoted children.

Lyuba

Lyuba recalls as a child to have felt privlidged and satisfaction to have been been a part of the beautiful Soviet reality. Upon see images of riots and shootings in theWestbon television shevonly fektvgrafitude forvbeing in safe and gloriius Soviet Unuin. "My God, I am so lucky to be living in the Soviet Union." She recalls tge fun she had as a child. She enjoyed all the contests that were held, all given wide press coverage. The children made posters on Soviet propaganda themes: nuclear weapons, Star Wars (the Reagan plan), imperialism, racism, capitalism, and similar themes. (Lyuba does not mentin that crativity was not promoted. Normally the children would be shown examples to emulate. This was Kriten Koza's experience at the Pioneer camp she attended. [Koza] ) All this was woven into the daily experience of their childhood. Lyuba tells us with a slight giggle, you went to school, you ate, and you worked for world peace. The children were taught that they could advance peace through projects like assisting the embattled revolutionaries in Nicaragua. The POV film shows clips of children like Lyuba having the time of their lives working earestly for world peace. Lyuba became a history teacher.

Borya

Borya is now Lyuba's husband. Borya was different from Lyuba. He became a rebel as an adolesent. He was startled with Gorbachev's Peristrika and Glasnost. It was almost as if he was suddenly in another countrty. Neither Lyuba or Borya could have possibly forseen what would happen to the Soviet Union they grew up in. Borya found he could describe even Lenin as evil. Most agreed about Stalin, but for many Lenin was a step too far. Borya teaches children about the horrors of the Soviet Union. As least he was doing so in 2011. We are not sure if that is still possible today. He describes collectivization, deportations, the Gulag, and he explains crimes so enormous that they are impossible to grasp. Lyuba and Borya see Peristrioka and Glasnost as a golden past. Many Russians and not agree and associate decmocracyband capitalism with chos and decline. Which is why President Putin until recently has been very popular.

Andrei

Andrei, a boyhood friend of Borya, as a child never even conceived of becoming an evil capitalist. He now owns a gleaming chain for uosacale clothing. There are scenes in his pacious, toney aparttment. (Lyuba and Borya on teacher salaries live in a small cluttered apartment.)

Kirsten Koza (1980s)

Kirsten Koza is a Canadian travel writer. The travel bug came early for her because her English grandmother took her back and forth to England for family visits. Then at the age of only 11 years she had the opportunity to attend a Soviet Young Pioneers summer camp in the middle of the Cold War. I think most 11 year olds would have rejected the idea. She would not be going with her parents or with friends, but with a group of other Canadian youths--all older than she was. Thanks to her mother, she kept a record of her adventures, the memorabilia, and even made a photographic record. The camp she attended was the Orlyonok Young Pioneer camp. It was a show-case camp for the Soviet elite and to impress foreign visitors. Kirsten at 11 was apoltical but through her 11 year old eyes she spotted many things that were not right about the Soviet Union. She tells us about her adventures, both in Moscow and at camp and her interaction with the other children. She also provides a great deal of information about the orlyonok Camp. And of course she provides us information about clothes, food, and uniforms.

Sources

Koza, Kirtsen. Lost in Moscow.

"My Perestroika," POV series (PBS: 2011).

Created: 6:26 PM 8/26/2019
Last updated: 6:26 PM 8/26/2019