Ukraine鈥檚 Decommunization Laws: Legislating the Past?
In May 2015, the Ukrainian government passed four controversial laws aimed at initiating a clean break with the country鈥檚 communist past. Included in the laws are instructions on removing remnants of the communist past (monuments and street names), prescriptions on how to write the country鈥檚 history, as well as new measures to reconfigure the country鈥檚 archives. While the defenders of the laws argue similar measures were taken in other post-socialist countries and they are necessary to win the current conflict with Russia, scholars and other groups have questioned the impact on academic freedom, as well as freedom of speech more generally in Ukraine. Dr. Marples and Dr. McBride discussed the debates surrounding the laws and in particular, the effects on academic discourse, archival politics, and Ukraine鈥檚 relations with the EU and Russia.
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Former Visiting Assistant Professor, Columbia University
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Kennan Institute
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