De-stalinisation (Noun)
Meaning
Social process of neutralizing the influence of Joseph Stalin by revising his policies and removing monuments dedicated to him and renaming places named in his honor; "his statue was demolished as part of destalinization".
Classification
Nouns denoting natural processes.
Examples
- The unveiling of Khrushchev's speech marked the beginning of de-Stalinisation in the Soviet Union, paving the way for reforms and rehabilitation of victims.
- De-Stalinisation played a key role in dismantling the cult of personality built around Stalin and his closest allies during his rule.
- Khrushchev's efforts towards de-Stalinisation led to the renaming of Stalingrad to Volgograd in a bid to distance the city from Stalin's legacy.
- In 1956, a wave of de-Stalinisation saw statues of Stalin dismantled across Eastern Europe, symbolizing the shift away from Soviet authoritarianism.
- During de-Stalinisation, many institutions, roads, and buildings named after Stalin were hastily renamed to erase his influence from public memory.