While living in Eastern Europe, specifically Poland and Estonia, for study abroad programs, the prevalence of racism was shocking to me. I knew to expect cultural differences, as the United States is typically more welcoming and accepting of differences, but I was not ready to witness blatant acts of racism. My friend, Puja, was called the n-word by a passerby while we were walking to school, Evan faced prejudice by his host family because he practiced Judaism, and Hannah was often asked questions about her appearance and why she was in Poland, with many people not thinking her response was satisfactory and continuing to pester. This pattern of behavior is not a coincidence- it needs to be stopped immediately. The prevalence of racism is affected by the historical background and religious affiliation of the region, but this shouldn’t excuse the behavior. Don’t blame conservatives for anything racist until you see how the Europeans act!
The historical background of the region plays an important role. Most of Eastern Europe was greatly influenced by the Soviet Union, or the USSR, and World War II. Both Adolf Hitler, the leader of Nazi Germany, and Joseph Stalin, a revolutionary in Soviet Russia who properly established the presence of the USSR in the political world, pushed racist ideas onto their people. The Holocaust Encyclopedia elaborates that Hitler viewed the Aryan race as the “master race,” deeming all others inferior, and made this one of his strongest beliefs while leading the Third Reich. Additionally, even though the Soviet Union pushed “anti-racist” rhetoric, as it was intended to be a classless state where everyone was equal, that was far from the truth. Many discriminatory policies were put into place, such as making entrance exams harder for Jewish students entering college, deportations of non-white Russians, and demonizing different ethnic groups in Russia. With these values deeply instilled into at least one Eastern European generation, with political socialization affecting the younger generations as well, it is difficult to undo the beliefs that were ingrained in entire countries. There has been intense progression in the region in the past 30 years, following the Solidarność movement in Poland and the fall of the USSR, but it is not enough to stop acts of racism from happening. Knowing this, it is easier to understand how racism can be prevalent in society still, due to how recently such events happened.
One could argue that there has been growth within the country since these events have happened, but from experience living in the region, there has not been much progression in the mindset of many Eastern Europeans. Although the younger generation is a bit more progressive than their predecessors, there is still a drastic difference in the way of thinking towards racism between teens in the USA and Eastern Europe.
In addition to historical background, nationalism plays a large role. In many Eastern European countries, especially those affected by the occupation of the Soviet Union, nationalism is a strong part of the cultural identity. For example, in Poland, there is a strong sense of national identity, especially due to the German occupation in World War II. Poland lost all sovereignty during the occupation, and following liberation, Polish pride became more and more widespread. Such nationalistic sentiments are still present today, and according to Adam Zamoyski, nationalism was once one of “Poland’s greatest virtues,” and current political candidates utilize common aspects of Polish life, such as religion, cultural identity, and traditional values, to appeal to the average Polish constituent.
Along with Poland, Russia is known for its nationalistic tendencies. Russia’s state ideology is referred to by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace as solely nationalism, as every aspect of Russian life is somehow affected by it. Russian Orthodox Christianity is deeply connected to the Kremlin, as the Head Patriarch of the church is a right-hand man to Vladimir Putin. As the majority of Russians identify as Orthodox, there is direct nationalistic influence via religious atmosphere. Additionally, state media constantly has pro-Russian propaganda playing on various channels, spanning from Soviet-era television to current news from the viewpoint of Russian politics.
Knowing that the consistent influence of strong national identity is a part of daily life in Eastern Europe, it is understandable that one outside of the culture would not fit in as well. With such pressure to support national identity, many East Europeans feel a sense of entitlement to approach someone who may not fit in and share their two cents on the foreigner’s presence in their country. Due to that, racism is more frequent in society there, and the concept of not fitting in visually puts people of color in a minority, as it is uncommon to see non-white individuals in daily commutes.
Comparing the environment of nationalism in Eastern Europe to America is very different. Eastern European countries have hundreds of years of national identity and ingrained cultural practices within their own people, whereas the United States only has 248 years of culture developed, with much of it being based on other cultures’ practices. For older generations with only the memory of a homogenous people of their respective nation, being introduced to new cultures and belief systems is foreign and hard to learn, but still doesn’t excuse the racist behaviors that still consistently happen in their societies.
Liberals often blame Republicans for racist acts or being inherently racist, but this proves that the European countries they’re trying to mimic so much actually are racist! Maybe these left-leaning socialist ideas aren’t all they chop it up to be… is that part of the problem?
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