Stalinism is a term that refers to a "theory and practice of communism" utilised in the
political system associated with
Joseph Stalin, leader of the
Soviet Union from 1928–1953.
[1] The term refers to a form of government which was inherently oppressive with extensive government
spying,
extrajudicial punishment, and political "purging", or elimination of political opponents either by direct killing, through exile or by the use of labour camps known as the
Gulag. It involves a
state making extensive use of
propaganda to establish a
personality cult around an
absolute dictator to maintain control over the population and to maintain political control for the
Communist Party. The term was originally coined in a positive sense by
Lazar Kaganovich, but nonetheless rejected by Stalin himself.
[citation needed]The term "Stalinism" is almost never used in a positive way. Stalinism has been additionally described as "red fascism", especially in the United States after 1945,[2] but the term Stalinism had already gained international currency in the 1930s when the fight for political supremacy between Stalin and Trotsky was at its peak.
Those who subscribe to the ideas of Marx, Engels, Lenin, Stalin and Mao almost never describe themselves as Stalinists; they see the term as derogatory and in the west are on the political fringe. In Russia though, Stalin is today viewed in a positive light by many and the current Russian authorities have been accused of suppressing the historical record.[3] In connection with the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact an OSCE parliamentary resolution has condemned both Stalinism and fascism for starting World War II and called for a day of remembrance for victims of both Stalinism and Nazism on August 23[year&_160;needed]. The Russian representatives in response to the resolution threatened the OSCE with "harsh consequences".[4][5]
Stalinism usually defines the style of a government rather than an ideology. The ideology was "Marxism-Leninism theory", reflecting that Stalin himself was not a theoretician, in contrast to Marx and Lenin, and prided himself on maintaining the legacy of Lenin as a founding father for the Soviet Union and the future Communist world. Stalinism is an interpretation of their ideas, and a certain political regime claiming to apply those ideas in ways fitting the changing needs of society, as with the transition from "socialism at a snail's pace" in the mid-twenties to the rapid industrialisation of the Five-Year Plans. Sometimes, although rarely, the compound terms "Marxism-Leninism-Stalinism" (used by the Brazilian MR-8), or teachings of Marx/Engels/Lenin/Stalin, are used to show the alleged heritage and succession. Simultaneously, however, many people who profess Marxism or Leninism view Stalinism as a perversion of their ideas; Trotskyists, in particular, are virulently anti-Stalinist, considering Stalinism a counter-revolutionary policy using vague Marxist-sounding rhetoric to achieve power.
