Борьба с антисемитизмом в советском тылу в начальный период Великой Отечественной войны, 1941–1942

Soviet and Post Soviet Review. 2021. Т. 48. № 1. С. 3–33.

Starkov A.

The outbreak of the Great Patriotic War led to an unprecedented evacuation of the Soviet population to the East as well as a significant growth of social conflicts. Consequently, open manifestations of anti-Semitism increased greatly, which were often connected with defeatism and anti-Soviet moods. This article analyzes the reasons for this phenomenon and is based on the materials of judicial investigative cases of the Chelyabinsk Regional Court. This article focuses on the state struggle against anti-Semitism, which was considered by the judicial authorities as quasi-anti-Soviet activity and aid to the enemy. This perception was determined by the catastrophic situation of the Red Army, Nazi propaganda against “Judeo-Bolshevism,” and the beginning of the Holocaust in the occupied territories. In these conditions of socio-political instability, mass anti-Semitism required severe punishments. This article’s conclusions allow a revision of the policy of the Soviet state toward the “Jewish issue” during the Second World War.

Keywords: СССР, Вторая мировая война, эвакуация, антисемитизм, World War II, советский тыл, Soviet Union, evacuation, Anti-Semitism, Soviet home front, советская юстиция, Soviet justice, anti-Soviet agitation, political crimes, антисоветская агитация

Publication based on the results of: Soviet Political, Social and Cultural Practices of the 1930s – 1980s: Crises and Continuity (2021)