Blog 2

Fig1. “Greetings to the fighters against fascism!”

by V. B. Koretsky, poster, 1937

Fig2. “Sightseeing of Moscow”

Claude McKay, an American poet of Jamaican origin, in his autobiographical book “A Long Way From Home” recounts his visit and stay in the USSR and his interaction with the communist party over there. This is the account of a black man in the 30’s, a time when non-whites had few prospects of advancement- both socially, and politically, and this book provides one with great insight on the atmosphere of the USSR at that time. Mckay begins his account about his travels to the USSR with mention of his friend, Sir Edgar Whitehead who introduces Mckay as a ‘kamrad une neger dichter’ (123), and a few Russians even attempted to make conversation with him. Whereas in the USA segregation was the norm and it was looked down upon to interact with black people in any social context, the communists refuse to follow such a norm, truly creating an environment of acceptance and unity, which is perhaps what appealed to Mckay about the USSR in the first place. In his account, Mckay says: ‘(USSR) was like an Arabian Nights dream transforming the bleak white face of an Arctic waste’ (127), emphasising the celebration and embracement of diversity through architecture, where everyone is treated with respect; that the crowds were ‘happier and friendlier’. This is in stark contrast to his receival from the American delegation, by whom he was resented. 

Most of Claude Mckay’s account on his travels to the USSR recounts a sense of solidarity, of ‘folklike’ unity that he experienced by not only the locals, but also by those of other ethnicities gathered there- the Japanese, the Chinese, the Indians. His tale is tinged with a feeling and a sense of belonging, something that he has not experienced before and will perhaps will never experience again, a feeling that allowed him for the first time to be proud of his ancestry and heritage. In the USSR, Mckay is awarded the most basic sense of dignity, of personhood so much so that he mentions the phrase ‘black icon’ twice in one paragraph- it shows the transformative power of personhood.

To analyse Mckay’s account in context of the Soviet propaganda posters (Fig. 1 and Fig. 2). Although Soveiet legacy on race is quite complex- it is by no means pure, as observed by Mckay when he says that he was just an entertainer- but, at the same time, it is not purely a propaganda pretence. The propaganda posters of the first half of the 20th century, particularly the 50’s and 60’s, were full of strong images full of fighters and hope whereas latter images of the 80’s (Fig. 2) portray a time of coexistence and peace.

 Although it can be argued that these images were produced partly to spite the American government, it cannot be denied that these posters proved empowering and liberating to those Africans who were fighting the wars of decolonisation. Fig. 2 relates more directly to what Mckay is talking about in his account- which is peaceful coexistence. This truly was the atmosphere in communist Russia at the time of Mckay’s visit- the dream of a collective and the theme of universality coming to life through the embracing of different ethnicities, races and cultures coming together to fight against the imperialists. At a time where racism was rampant, it is extraordinary to see people from all over the world joining hands with one another in the spirit of internationalism and a proliferation of distinct and diverse ways of innahibitation- the complete inverse of colonialism. Fig. 1, on the other hand, is a more serious image of war and military fight. These images were rampant even in the latter part of the 20th century, during the final phases of decolonisation. But the fact that posters such as these existed even during the 1930’s stands as a testament to the cultural solidarity and diversity that the Soviet Union embraced. Although it is said that the USSR’s ‘love affair’ with Africa started in the 70’s, propaganda posters such as these make it quite obvious that the revolution that the Soviet Union intended on bringing about was international, and through collaboration with the local inhabitants of the colonised areas themselves. These posters portray a sense of solidarity in the plight of the colonised and propagate ideas of unity and diversity, as observed by the treatment of the Russians of Mckay, accounted for in his autobiography. While one can never be fully sure whether or not most of these Soviet era posters were purely for the purposes of propaganda, one cannot deny that these posters did reflect some sort of truth of the Soviet society- that they did in fact celebrate diversity not only by inviting people from different races and communities from all over the world to study in their universities, but also by interacting with them which starkly contrasts with ostracization that these people faced due to their race and ethnicity in their own home countries.