Johanna Kluit

Johanna graduated in 2021 with a BA degree in International Studies (specialisation Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies) from Leiden University (Netherlands), and obtained her MSc degree (distinction) in ‘Russian, East European and Eurasian Studies’ from the University of Glasgow in 2022. She shares her interest in Russia and Eastern Europe with her interest in the history of radical political thought and the daily practice of identity politics. She previously worked in (investigative) journalism. 

PGR Supervisors: Dr Matthew Adams and Dr Caroline Kennedy-Pipe

This research aims to examine how Russian anarchists positioned themselves with regard to the so-called ‘national question’ ensuing the collapse of the Soviet Union under the leadership of Mikhail Gorbachev (1985-1991) and his predecessor Boris Yeltsin (1991-1999). The study examines several currently underexplored themes including post-Soviet Russian anarchism, the anarchist perspective on the National Question, and the academic contribution of anarchist perspectives to Nationalism Studies. This research project centres around three central questions: What characterised Russian anarchism in the late 20th century? How did Russian anarchists perform and reproduce their national identity, and have anarchist conceptions of nation, nationalisation, and nationalism influenced positions on national liberation struggles in the post-Soviet sphere? And last, how do Russian anarchist perspectives on the national question contribute to a better understanding of the nation, nationalisation, and nationalism?