What is a dissident? Dissident movement in the USSR

In the times of the Soviet Union, not all of the population was quite active. Dissidents were people who did not support the political views of others, as well as Soviet power. They were ardent opponents of communism and treated poorly everyone who had anything to do with this. In turn, the government of the Soviet Union could not ignore the dissidents. Dissidents in the USSR openly declared their political point of view. Sometimes they united in whole underground organizations. In turn, the authorities persecuted dissidents by law.

"Political dissident"

Dissidents in the USSR were under strict prohibition. Everyone who treated them could easily be sent into exile and often even shot. However, the underground dissidents lasted only until the end of the 50-ies. From the 1960s until the 1980s, the dissident movement had a significant advantage on the public stage. The term "political dissident" gave the government a lot of trouble. And this is not surprising, since they brought their opinion to the public almost in the open.

In the mid-1960s, virtually every citizen, and not only the USSR, but also abroad, knew about what a "dissident" was. Dissidents distributed leaflets, secret and open letters to many businesses, newspapers and even state institutions. They also tried, as far as possible, to send leaflets and declare their existence to other countries of the world.

Government's attitude towards dissidents

So, what is a "dissident", and where did this term come from? It was introduced in the early 60's to denote anti-government movements. Also often used the term "political dissident", but it was originally used in other countries of the world. Over time, dissidents themselves in the Soviet Union began to call themselves.

Sometimes the government exposed dissidents as real bandits implicated in terrorist attacks, such as an explosion in Moscow in 1977. However, this was far from the case. Like any organization, dissidents had their own rules, one might say, laws. We can single out the main ones: "Do not use violence", "Openness of actions", "Protection of fundamental human rights and freedoms", as well as "Compliance with laws".

The main task of the dissident movement

The main task of dissidents was to inform citizens that the communist system had outlived itself and that standards from the Western world should replace it. They performed their task in various forms, but often it was the publication of literature, leaflets. Dissidents sometimes gathered in groups and held demonstrations.

What is a "dissident" was already known practically throughout the world, and only in the Soviet Union they were equated with terrorists. They were often called not "dissidents", but simply "anti-Soviet" or "anti-Soviet elements." In fact, many dissidents just so called themselves and often renounced the definition of "dissident".

Alexander Isaevich Solzhenitsyn

One of the most active participants in this movement was Alexander Isaevich Solzhenitsyn. The dissident was born in 1918. Alexander Isaevich was a member of the dissident society for more than a decade. He was one of the most ardent opponents of the Soviet system and Soviet power. It can be said that Solzhenitsyn was one of the instigators of the dissident movement.

Conclusion of a dissident

During the Second World War, he went to the front and rose to the rank of captain. However, he began to disapprove of many of Stalin's actions. Even during the war, he was in correspondence with a comrade, in which he severely criticized Iosif Vissarionovich. In his documents the dissident kept the papers, in which he compared the Stalinist regime with serfdom. The employees of Smersh became interested in these documents. After this, an investigation began, as a result of which Solzhenitsyn was arrested. He was deprived of the captain's rank, and in late 1945 he received a term.

In conclusion, Alexander Isaevich spent almost 8 years. In 1953 he was released. However, even after the conclusion, he did not change his opinion and attitude to the Soviet power. Most likely, Solzhenitsyn only became convinced that dissidents in the Soviet Union have a hard time.

Deprivation of the right to legal publication

Alexander Isaevich published many articles and works on the subject of Soviet power. However, with the coming to power of Brezhnev, he was deprived of the right to legal publication of his records. Later, the KGB officers seized Solzhenitsyn from all his documents, which contained anti-Soviet propaganda, but even after that Solzhenitsyn was not going to stop his activities. He began to actively engage in social movements, as well as performances. Alexander Isaevich tried to convey to everyone what a "dissident" is. In connection with these events, the Soviet government began to perceive Solzhenitsyn as a serious enemy of the state.

After Alexander's books were released in the United States without his permission, he was expelled from the writers' community of the USSR. Against Solzhenitsyn was unleashed a real information war in the Soviet Union. Anti-Soviet movements in the USSR more and more did not like the authorities. Thus, in the mid-1970s, the Council of the CPSU Central Committee raised the issue of Solzhenitsyn's activities. At the end of the congress, it was decided to arrest him. After that, on February 12, 1974, Solzhenitsyn was arrested and deprived of Soviet citizenship, and later he was deported from the USSR to the FRG. The KGB officers personally delivered him on an airplane. Two days later, a decree was issued to confiscate and destroy all documents, articles and any anti-Soviet materials. All the internal affairs of the USSR were now classified as "secret".