| Most historians and history teachers agree that preserving history is of the utmost importance; as history gets lost to time, so do its lessons. The choice to nearly omit the horrific atrocities of Joseph Stalin from many curriculums is a dangerous one. Erasing Stalin’s deadly acts from history and keeping his brutality a secret from future generations puts the world at risk. The history of Stalin’s genocides is difficult to uncover as censorship, and his connection to socialism/communism, has caused a lack of available resources that reveal the truth. Many survivors of his evil regime have tried to develop memorials for their loved ones so that the world would not forget the pain and terror that Stalin inflicted on his own people in the name of communism; however, most of these memorials no longer exist. It is time for Joseph Stalin to take his rightful place in history among the most inhumane, evil, and ruthless tyrants whose merciless rule took the lives of millions of innocent people. This lesson focuses on Stalin’s genocides (though the use of the term ‘genocide’ to describe his atrocities is up for debate among scholars and historians). The United Nations appeased Stalin’s request to alter the definition of genocide so that his actions would not fall under that category, and educators have followed suit.
[Stanford historian Norman Naimark and other scholars confirm that the Soviet Union, under Joseph Stalin’s leadership, played a decisive role in narrowing the United Nations’ 1948 definition of genocide to exclude political and social groups. Early drafts of the Genocide Convention—shaped by Raphael Lemkin’s broader concept—had included these categories, which would have covered Stalin’s mass killings of political opponents, kulaks, and other social classes. […] The Soviet delegation vetoed any definition of genocide that might include the actions of its leader, Joseph Stalin. The Allies, exhausted by war, were loyal to their Soviet allies – to the detriment of subsequent generations. Naimark argues that that the narrow definition of genocide is the dictator’s unacknowledged legacy to us today.] This lesson does not question Stalin’s brutality, like many others so wrongfully do, nor does it hide the suffering inflicted on people living under communism. This lesson will be one that changes the future as more and more generations learn the truth about Stalin and his murderous communist regime including the deadly gulag system and the tragic Holodomor. Download: Stalin’s Genocides Lesson Plan Parent resource coming soon! |
