Video
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The horrifying genius of Soviet communism — as conceived in the 1920s, perfected in the 1930s, and then spread by force to Soviet-occupied Europe — was the system’s ability to get the silent majority in so many countries to play along without much protest. Although a small proportion of people protested and a small proportion collaborated, carefully targeted violence, propaganda, and states’ monopoly of economic and civic institutions persuaded the rest to go along.
These techniques were used to great effect in Eastern Europe after 1945, and they are the central topic of this lecture as well as Anne Applebaum’s new book, titled “Iron Curtain: The Crushing of Eastern Europe, 1945–56.” Books will be available for purchase at the event.
If you cannot attend, we welcome you to watch the event live on this page. Full video will be posted within 24 hours.








