Past Event! Note: this event has already taken place.
LECTURE: Cossacks Between Russia and Ukraine- The Identity Side of Russia’s Full-Scale Invasion with Dr. Richard Arnold
April 20, 2023 at 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM
| Location: | 3220 Richcraft Hall |
| Audience: | Anyone |
Join us for the upcoming EURUS event “Cossacks Between Russia and Ukraine- The Identity Side of Russia’s Full-Scale Invasion” with guest lecturer Dr. Richard Arnold, Associate Professor of Political Science at Muskingum University and a member of PONARS.
DATE: Thursday, April 20th
TIME: 12:00PM-1:00PM
LOCATION: Richcraft Hall, room 3220
REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED. Please Register using the form below.
About “Cossacks Between Russia and Ukraine”:
What is the role of the shared Cossack legacy in the war in Ukraine? How do cultural legacies expand our understanding of the causes and longevity of the war? Is this Putin’s or Russia’s war. While Russia and Ukraine share many cultural traditions, this essay takes just one- the Cossack legacy- and uses it to gauge popular support for the war. Ukraine has nationalized the Cossack image and legacy in recent years, building it into one foundation of its nationalist narrative. Russia also has its own Cossack movement, at first organic but increasingly commandeered by the government until in 2019 a central organization for overseeing all Cossack regional hosts developed. Dr. Arnold will present a recent publication, in which he argues that whereas in Russia the Cossack legacy has become institutionalized as a paramilitary movement, in Ukraine the legacy has become foundational to a civic conception of nationhood (Smith, 1988). The disputed nature of the Cossack legacy can be further seen in attitudes from ordinary Russians and Ukrainians, articles from Cossack organizations, and in the character of the war crimes that Russia has perpetrated. All told, the evidence suggests that the enthusiasm and responsibility for the war are popularly shared among ordinary Russians.
About the Speaker:
Richard Arnold is Associate Professor of Political Science at Muskingum University and a member of PONARS. He is the author of Russian Nationalism and Ethnic Violence: Symbolic Violence, Lynching, Pogrom, and Massacre (Routledge, 2016) and the edited volume, Russia and the 2018 FIFA World Cup (Routledge, 2021). He has published numerous articles in Post-Soviet Affairs, Problems of Post-Communism, Nationalities Papers, Theoretical Criminology, Journal for the Study of Radicalism, and others. Newly returned from a Fulbright award in Poland (relocated from Ukraine, due to the war), Dr. Arnold’s latest project focuses on the Cossack legacy and movements in Russian and Ukraine.