| Abstract [eng] |
Anti-Semitism in the Lithuanian SSR was a phenomenon produced by the interaction between negative attitudes towards and prejudice against Jews that had taken root in certain sections of society prior to the Soviet occupation and the hostility towards Jews under the influence of Soviet ideology, sporadically aided and abetted at the state level, which might be designated as Soviet anti-Semitism. The hostility towards Jews based on anti-Judaic myths acquired the hallmarks of modern anti-Semitism during the period of the Lithuanian national revival in the nineteenth century; anti-Semitism in the interwar Lithuania manifested itself in competition for the domination in the economic sphere and in accusing Jews of pro-communist activities; anti-Semitism, gaining momentum during the first Soviet occupation, warranted genocidal policies pursued under Nazi occupation. Since 1944, when Lithuania was annexed by the Soviet Union, anti-Semitism could neither be tolerated nor openly disseminated due to its contradictions to the basic ideological tenets of Communism. Hence, anti-Semitism was regarded as a social phenomenon of the capitalist system and was formally persecuted. Notwithstanding ideological postulates, Soviet anti-Semitism, however, was effectively shaped and maintained until the declaration of Lithuania’s independence through latent hostility towards the Jews by way of various propaganda campaigns and restrictions in the cultural, educational and religious spheres. The dissertation analyzes the development of anti-Semitism in the Lithuanian SSR based on an integrated analysis of the scientific research, archives, periodicals, memoirs and reminiscences. |
