Tear down this wall!
<h4><a href="https://vmps.omeka.net/exhibits/show/public-service-spoken-word/public-service-spoken-word">Return to Public Service through the Spoken Word</a></h4>
"Tear down this wall", also known as the Berlin Wall Speech, was a speech delivered by United States President Ronald Reagan in West Berlin on June 12, 1987. Reagan called for the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev, to open the Berlin Wall, which had separated West and East Berlin since 1961. The name is derived from a key line in the middle of the speech: "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" <br /><br />Arriving in Berlin on Friday, June 12, 1987, President and Mrs. Reagan were taken to the Reichstag, where they viewed the wall from a balcony. Reagan then made his speech at the Brandenburg Gate at 2:00 pm, in front of two panes of bulletproof glass. <br /><br />That afternoon, Reagan said, 'We welcome change and openness; for we believe that freedom and security go together, that the advance of human liberty can only strengthen the cause of world peace. There is one sign the Soviets can make that would be unmistakable, that would advance dramatically the cause of freedom and peace. General Secretary Gorbachev, if you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization, come here to this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate. Mr. Gorbachev...Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!'
White House Photographic Office
<p>Archives.gov<br />https://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2007/summer/berlin.html </p>
<p>ReaganFoundation.org<br />https://www.reaganfoundation.org/programs-events?utm_source=googleads&utm_medium=click&utm_campaign=events&utm_content=response&gclid=CjwKCAjw_qb3BRAVEiwAvwq6Vv5wJ_YB4CNO9elaI6J1WQMY6cjSLCaBI6-v6tCiCmLn5WZz8wRrQBoCxWgQAvD_BwE</p>
Regan Foundation<br />Archives.gov
Ronald Reagan Presidential Library
June 12 1987
White House Photographic Office
Ronald Reagan Presidential Library
Photograph
English
Speech
Freedom, Soviet Union, Reagan, Speech, Berlin Wall
Germany
Detailed Agenda
<h4><a href="https://vmps.omeka.net/exhibits/show/russian-posters-gallery/russian-posters-gallery">Return to Russian Cartoons & Posters: From Red Tape to Red Square</a></h4>
"Poet: Kapralova, V. (The poem is omitted)
“The Fighting Pencil” group, 1971
Text on the scroll (from bottom up):
“To:
27. Further raise the quality of presentations at meetings.
28. Implement progressive methods of efficient meeting conduct.
29. Meet and exceed meeting attendance quotas.
30. Better manage the procurement of water carafes.
31. Eliminate idle time of typists and stenographers.
32. Improve moderation practices at briefings and other short meetings.
33. Eliminate typing errors in the records of meeting proceedings.
34. Introduce new…
35. Adopt new methods…
36. …”
The poster’s criticism is aimed at the Soviet bureaucrats’ affinity for long and endless meetings, the obvious shallowness of the issues they discussed, and, mainly, at the fact that holding meetings became their primary and only function.
This cartoon was created in the years associated with economic stagnation and Leonid Brezhnev’s leadership. Overtly cautious and incapable of strategic thinking, he never made important political and economic decisions without extensively discussing them with other Politburo members. This tactics of “muddling through by balancing in the political middle” (Chubarov, 2001, 144) often lead to half measures and accumulations of unresolved problems. The indeterminate nature of his policies could not but impact the way government bureaucratic structures conducted their business. The artists recognized this fact and creatively expressed it."
Travin, V.
Rutgers & Continuum
Rutgers & Continuum
1971
Rutgers & Continuum
"Source:
Holzer, M., Illiash, I., Gabrielian, V., & Kuznestsova, L. (2010). Red Tape from Red Square:Bureaucratic Commentary in Soviet Graphic Satirical Art. Poughkeepsie, NY: NetPublicaions
Chubarov, A. (2001).
Russia’s Bitter Path to Modernity: A History of the Soviet and Post-Soviet Eras. New York, London: Continuum."
<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Red-Tape-Square-Bureaucratic-Commentary/dp/0942942116">Rutgers</a><br /><br /><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Russias-Bitter-Path-Modernity-Post-Soviet/dp/0826413501">Continuum</a>
Medium: Poster
Russian
Artwork
Art, Satire, Cartoons, Bureaucracy, Stagnation, Brezhnev, Soviet Union
Russia
The Labyrinth
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"Written on the papers: “Order, Instruction, Decree, Explanation to Paragraph No. 141, Supplement to Instruction No. 638, Item 45 of Order No. 651…”
Typical for the Soviet command-and-control type of administration, policies that had direct bearing on people’s lives were carried out not through a legislative process but by decrees of top leadership, put in place or withdrawn by their will (Eaton, 2004). There was no place for logic or common sense in routine decision making. As Solnick (1998) indicates: “Procedures and documentation mattered far more than any sort of Weberian rationality in guiding the behavior of policy makers”.
None
Rutgers & Harvard
Rutgers & Harvard
None
Rutgers & Harvard
Source:
Holzer, M., Illiash, I., Gabrielian, V., & Kuznestsova, L. (2010). Red Tape from Red Square:Bureaucratic Commentary in Soviet Graphic Satirical Art. Poughkeepsie, NY: NetPublicaions
Solnick, S. L. (1998). Stealing the State: Control and Collapse in Soviet institutions. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Red-Tape-Square-Bureaucratic-Commentary/dp/0942942116">Rutgers</a><br /><br /><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Stealing-State-Collapse-Institutions-Research/dp/0674836812/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=Stealing+the+State%3A+Control+and+Collapse+in+Soviet+institutions&qid=1581621719&sr=8-2">Harvard</a>
Medium: Poster
Russian
Artwork
Art, Satire, Cartoons, Soviet Union, Bad Management, Authoritarian
Russia
It fits!
<h4><a href="https://vmps.omeka.net/exhibits/show/russian-posters-gallery/russian-posters-gallery">Return to Russian Cartoons & Posters: From Red Tape to Red Square</a></h4>
As Chubarov (2001) put it, in a rapidly changing world, it was the “revolution of the microchip and the computer” taking place in the West that jeopardized the Soviet Union’s status as a great power under Leonid Brezhnev. The inability to incorporate the latest scientific and technological innovations into the production processes became the lid that sealed the coffin of the Soviet economy.
Oboznenko, D.
Rutgers, Continuum
Rutgers, Continuum
None
Rutgers, Continuum
"Source: Holzer, M., Illiash, I., Gabrielian, V., & Kuznestsova, L. (2010). Red Tape from Red Square:Bureaucratic Commentary in Soviet Graphic Satirical Art. Poughkeepsie, NY: NetPublicaions Chubarov, A. (2001). <br /><br />Russia’s Bitter Path to Modernity: A History of the Soviet and Post-Soviet Eras. New York, London: Continuum."
<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Red-Tape-Square-Bureaucratic-Commentary/dp/0942942116">Red Tape</a><br /><br /><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Russias-Bitter-Path-Modernity-Post-Soviet/dp/0826413501">Modernity</a>
Medium: Poster
Russian
Artwork
Art, Satire, Cartoons, Microchip, Computers, Soviet Union, Science
Russia
Orders
<h4><a href="https://vmps.omeka.net/exhibits/show/russian-posters-gallery/russian-posters-gallery">Return to Russian Cartoons & Posters: From Red Tape to Red Square</a></h4>
"Poet: Yefimovski, Y.
He gave orders, many a task,
“Work harder!”—he was bellowing.
But he never left his desk
To check if team was following.
This is an apt illustration of how decisions are made under the authoritarian type of leadership. Analyzing Russia’s historical context can help explain the persistence of authoritarian decision-making throughout different political regimes. As Chubarov (2001) denotes, whatever the political system, autocracy is typical for the traditional Russian state: “The prerogatives of the Russian
leader—be it Moscow prince, all-Russian tsar, or Soviet general secretary—have traditionally been vast and autocratic and have also been hostile to pluralism”. At a smaller scale, this tendency was replicated at all key decision-making positions."
Travin, V.
Rutgers
Rutgers, Continuum
1981
Rutgers, Continuum
Source: Holzer, M., Illiash, I., Gabrielian, V., & Kuznestsova, L. (2010). Red Tape from Red Square:Bureaucratic Commentary in Soviet Graphic Satirical Art. Poughkeepsie, NY: NetPublicaions <br /><br />Chubarov, A. (2001). Russia’s Bitter Path to Modernity: A History of the Soviet and Post-Soviet Eras. New York, London: Continuum.
<a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwji97vM8cfnAhUphOAKHapGChcQFjAAegQIAhAB&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FRed-Tape-Square-Bureaucratic-Commentary%2Fdp%2F0942942116&usg=AOvVaw3itne_OTzN7RTVDFHi5THb">Red Tape</a><br /><br /><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Russias-Bitter-Path-Modernity-Post-Soviet/dp/0826413501">Modernity</a>
Medium: Poster
Russian
Artwork
Art, Satire, Cartoons, Authoritarian, Authoritarianism, Soviet Union, Autocracy
Russia
Good luck!
<h4><a href="https://vmps.omeka.net/exhibits/show/russian-posters-gallery/russian-posters-gallery">Return to Russian Cartoons & Posters: From Red Tape to Red Square</a></h4>
"Poet: Shkliarinsky, A. “The Fighting Pencil” group, 1967
Young chickens better quit the squeak,
stop calling for attention:
New boss, the Fox, has a good hand… at cutting population.
Sign above the Bear’s table: “Human Resources Manager.”
The document the Fox is carrying reads:
“To Appoint––Ms. Fox as the manager of the poultry farm.”
Chubarov argues that in the Soviet Union “the system of elite recruitment evolved in such a way that party bosses controlled the personnel policy at their corresponding levels” (2001, p. 59). This, essentially, means that the Party held the monopoly on controlling who gets appointed or “elected” to posi6ons of authority in the party itself, government and all other important social structures—to the so-called nomenklatura posts.
According to Brown (1982), these are positions at various levels of the administrative hierarchy from the all-Union to the district level which are considered to be of political or economic importance and appointments to which must be approved by the party committee at that particular level. The choice is limited to people who are on the nomenklatura list and who have already, therefore, received the party’s attestation of political fitness. A place on the nomenklatura is also intended to be a guarantee of a certain level of ability, but… when people are removed from a responsible position because of shortcomings in their work, this fact is glossed over… and they are enabled to move to another nomenklatura post."
Cherepanov, Y. - First photo; Kunnap, V. - Second photo
Rutgers, Continuum, Free Press
Rutgers, Continuum, Free Press
1965 - first photo; 1967 - second photo
Rutgers, Continuum, Free Press
"Source: Brown, A. (1982). Political Developments: Some Conclusions and an Interpretation. In: Brown, A., and M. Kaser (Eds.). The Soviet Union since the Fall of Khrushchev, 2nd Ed. London and Basingstoke: The Macmillan Press LTD. <br /><br />Chubarov, A. (2001). Russia’s Btter Path to Modernity: A History of the Soviet and Post-Soviet Eras. New York, London: Continuum. <br /><br />Holzer, M., Illiash, I., Gabrielian, V., & Kuznestsova, L. (2010). Red Tape from Red Square:Bureaucratic Commentary in Soviet Graphic Satirical Art. Poughkeepsie, NY: NetPublications"
<a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwji97vM8cfnAhUphOAKHapGChcQFjAAegQIAhAB&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FRed-Tape-Square-Bureaucratic-Commentary%2Fdp%2F0942942116&usg=AOvVaw3itne_OTzN7RTVDFHi5THb">Red Tape</a><br /><br /><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Russias-Bitter-Path-Modernity-Post-Soviet/dp/0826413501">Modernity</a><br /><br /><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Soviet-Union-Since-Fall-Khrushchev/dp/B000JDUYBS">Fall of Khrushchev</a>
Poster
Russian
Artwork
The Fighting Pencil, Soviet Union, Nomenklatura, Art, Satire, Party, Satire
Russia
Nothing you can do
<h4><a href="https://vmps.omeka.net/exhibits/show/russian-posters-gallery/russian-posters-gallery">Return to Russian Cartoons & Posters: From Red Tape to Red Square</a></h4>
"Poet: Tumarinson, G. “The Fighting Pencil” group, 1968
“Accurate and impartial consideration of complaints from the working popula6on should be an adamant rule. Meanwhile, there are cases of soulless rebuffs and inexorable delay of responses. Unfortunately, it sometimes happens that these letters are sent for consideration to those officials whose actions were protested by the petitioners” (From the newspaper Pravda).
The Wolf has an office and mouth very loud,
He scolded the Hare and started to shout.
Offended, the weeping Hare
Brought his petition to the Bear.
The Bear didn’t probe too deeply into the act,
He resolved the problem as a matter of fact.
The end is obvious for the Hare:
He needed intensive health care.
PEOPLE WHO EXAMINE GRIEVANCES
SHOULDN'T FORGET INCIDENTS LIKE THIS. "
Kunnap, V.
Rutgers
Rutgers
1968
Rutgers
Source: Holzer, M., Illiash, I., Gabrielian, V., & Kuznestsova, L. (2010). Red Tape from Red Square:Bureaucratic Commentary in Soviet Graphic Satirical Art. Poughkeepsie, NY: NetPublications
<a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwji97vM8cfnAhUphOAKHapGChcQFjAAegQIAhAB&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FRed-Tape-Square-Bureaucratic-Commentary%2Fdp%2F0942942116&usg=AOvVaw3itne_OTzN7RTVDFHi5THb">Amazon</a>
Medium: Poster
Russian
Artwork
The Fighting Pencil, Cartoons, Art, Satire, Grievances, Protest, Soviet Union
Russia
I need those who fit this measure…
<h4><a href="https://vmps.omeka.net/exhibits/show/russian-posters-gallery/russian-posters-gallery">Return to Russian Cartoons & Posters: From Red Tape to Red Square</a></h4>
"The real interest of the party-state-managerial nomenklatura was “in maintaining at any cost their privileged position in society because it allowed them to grab the biggest share of the national product. The chief criteria of personnel selection within the nomenklatura were not competence or professionalism, but obedience and personal loyalty to leaders at the higher level. Administrators
and managers were not elected or even rotated, but were appointed through the nomenklatura networks of patronage and nepotism. The ruling elite was increasingly transformed into a privileged caste and an antielite, whose members stood above the law and the rest of society” (Chubarov, 2001, p. 146).
A. D. Sakharov, a great Soviet scientist and a well-known dissident, wrote in this regard:
The whole manner of getting a job and advancement is very strongly connected with the interrelationships within the system. Each important administrator has attached to him personally certain people who move with him from place to place as he is transferred. There is something irresistible about this and it seems to be a kind of law of our state structure (in Brown et al, 1982, p. 264)."
Cherepanov, Y.
Rutgers
Rutgers
1965
Rutgers
Source: Holzer, M., Illiash, I., Gabrielian, V., & Kuznestsova, L. (2010). Red Tape from Red Square:Bureaucratic Commentary in Soviet Graphic Satirical Art. Poughkeepsie, NY: NetPublications
<a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwji97vM8cfnAhUphOAKHapGChcQFjAAegQIAhAB&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FRed-Tape-Square-Bureaucratic-Commentary%2Fdp%2F0942942116&usg=AOvVaw3itne_OTzN7RTVDFHi5THb">Amazon</a>
Medium: Poster
Russian
Artwork
Cartoons, Art, Satire, Obedience, Loyalty, Nomenklatura, Soviet Union, Corruption
Russia
Why are you luring my people away from me
<h4><a href="https://vmps.omeka.net/exhibits/show/russian-posters-gallery/russian-posters-gallery">Return to Russian Cartoons & Posters: From Red Tape to Red Square</a></h4>
"Poet: Shkliarinsky, V. “The Fighting Pencil” group, 1973
The people choose to work in those places
That have well-organized and clean workspaces.
Although working conditions at Soviet enterprises had significantly improved since Stalin’s times, many of the issues still remained.
The biggest of them was labor safety. Among others were the run down physical conditions of buildings, lack of shower facilities, inadequate lighting and ventilation, unreliability of equipment due to age or poor quality of repairs."
Travin, V.
Rutgers
Rutgers
1973
Rutgers
Source: Holzer, M., Illiash, I., Gabrielian, V., & Kuznestsova, L. (2010). Red Tape from Red Square:Bureaucratic Commentary in Soviet Graphic Satirical Art. Poughkeepsie, NY: NetPublications
<a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwji97vM8cfnAhUphOAKHapGChcQFjAAegQIAhAB&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FRed-Tape-Square-Bureaucratic-Commentary%2Fdp%2F0942942116&usg=AOvVaw3itne_OTzN7RTVDFHi5THb">Amazon</a>
Medium: Poster
Russian
Artwork
Cartoons, Bureaucracy, Art, Satire, Fighting Pencil, Soviet Union, Labor Safety, Safety
Russia
"Let's make him a front-rank worker."
<h4><a href="https://vmps.omeka.net/exhibits/show/russian-posters-gallery/russian-posters-gallery">Return to Russian Cartoons & Posters: From Red Tape to Red Square</a></h4>
"Poet: Lezunov, B. “The Fighting Pencil” group, 1972
They give everything to the hero
But ignore the working team:
Here they set records
Only for show!
In the former Soviet Union the highest form of non-monetary appraisal was the honorary degree ""Hero of Socialist Labor"" (although, in an economy where almost everything was distributed and demand was overpowering supply, this could turn into material benefits as well). This title was usually awarded to people who set record achievements in industry, for example coal mining (although scientists who had inventions were sometimes also awarded this title). For public relations purposes, many organizations strove hard to have their own heroes of socialist labor, so they created exceptional conditions for some workers to excel, while ignoring the rest."
Belomlinsky, M.
Rutgers
Rutgers
1972
Rutgers
Source: Holzer, M., Illiash, I., Gabrielian, V., & Kuznestsova, L. (2010). Red Tape from Red Square:Bureaucratic Commentary in Soviet Graphic Satirical Art. Poughkeepsie, NY: NetPublications
<a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwji97vM8cfnAhUphOAKHapGChcQFjAAegQIAhAB&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FRed-Tape-Square-Bureaucratic-Commentary%2Fdp%2F0942942116&usg=AOvVaw3itne_OTzN7RTVDFHi5THb">Amazon</a>
Medium: Poster
Russian
Artwork
Art, Satire, Cartoons, Soviet Union, Heroes of Socialist Labor, Socialism, Fighting Pencil
Russia