More specifically, according to a recent survey by the independent Levada Center, the percentage of Russians who have a positive perception for the communist leader has been increased. Some 46 percent of respondents viewed Stalin positively, compared with 21 percent who said that they hated or feared the former leader. Another 22 percent described themselves as merely “indifferent.”
Most Russians — 32 percent — said that they looked upon Joseph Stalin “with respect.” Ten percent said that they had “sympathetic views,” while four percent said that they looked upon the leader with “admiration.”
The positive view that the majority of Russians have for Stalin becomes even more important if we take into account the negative, anti-communist, anti-soviet propaganda of all these years. Despite the negative portrayal of the Soviet Union and Socialism by bourgeois mechanisms, both Lenin and Stalin are considered as respected figures by many Russians of all ages.
On the contrary, the 'architect' of the counter-revolutionary Perestroika Mikhail Gorbachev and his successor, Boris Yeltsin, have the lowest positive views. Gorbachev and Yeltsin drew positive views from just 8 percent and 16 percent respectively. Both have notably high negative ratings as well, with more than 60 percent of Russians saying they have "distaste" or "hatred" for Gorbachev in particular.
The positive view that the majority of Russians have for Stalin becomes even more important if we take into account the negative, anti-communist, anti-soviet propaganda of all these years. Despite the negative portrayal of the Soviet Union and Socialism by bourgeois mechanisms, both Lenin and Stalin are considered as respected figures by many Russians of all ages.
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| The survey of the Levada Center took place between 20-23 January 2017 and was conducted throughout all Russia in both urbal and rural settings. |
