Russocentrism as an Ideological Project of Belarusian Identity since 1990

On March 3, 2010, at 18:00, the next meeting of the regular research seminar of the Political Sphere Institute will take place in the CSI courtyard.

Topic of the presentation: “Russocentrism as an Ideological Project of Belarusian Identity since 1990”.

Speaker: Aliaksei Lastouski.

All interested persons are invited.

For additional information about the venue, please contact [email protected] (https://palityka.org/2010/02/2009/12/16-snezhnya-2009-krytyka-belaruskaj-palitychnaj-analityki-ch-2/[email protected])
Presentation theses:
Justification of an approach to the study of the political development of the nation-state as the identification, description, and analysis of various competing projects of nationhood and identity.

The problem of nomination.

The shortcomings of existing categories (West-Russism, Russian nationalism, Slavophilism, etc.).

The proposal of “Russocentrism” as a promising neologism for research purposes.

The ideological core and main discursive characteristics of Russocentrism (idealism, dualism, conspiracy thinking, eschatology).

The institutional formation of Russocentrism (personalities, publications, organizations).

Genesis and ideological sources (West-Russism, Russian national-patriotism).

The evolution of development from the early 1990s to 2007 (changes in strategies for building an alliance with Russia, relations with the authorities).

Relations with other ideological projects of the Belarusian nation (ontologization of relations with the “hostile” camp, the difficulties of analytically distinguishing it from the state project of national identity).

Categories for describing the Belarusian nation in the Russocentric project:
1) criteria of political community (“ours” and “others”, the Russian people as the central category);
2) attitudes toward the language question;
3) the past of Belarusians as part of the Russian people, the specificity of Russocentric historicism;
4) a providential vision of the present as a confrontation between a global conspiracy and a messianic community (Belarusians/the Russian people);
5) forecasts and strategies for the development of the Belarusian state and nation.

The significance of Russocentrism for the cultural and political life of Belarus, assessment of the possibilities and prospects of this project.