On April 19, Russia will mark for the first time the Day of Remembrance for the victims of the “genocide of the Soviet people,” a commemorative date introduced by Putin late last year. Formally, the date is dedicated to events of World War II, but Russian schools have chosen to use it to justify the war against Ukraine.
Dozens of schools, technical colleges, and colleges held lessons titled Hour of Remembrance: No Statute of Limitations. According to the lesson script uncovered by Agentstvo, students were told about “newly emerged Nazis” in Ukraine and the struggle against “international fascism.”
“The memory of the genocide of the Soviet people is not just history — it is a reminder of the ideology being fought today during the special military operation,” — a school in Ivanovo region stated.
A separate section of the lesson was devoted to Donbas, which the teaching materials described as “a special territory for every modern Russian.” Teachers were instructed to speak about the Saur-Mogila memorial and say that it was destroyed “during the battles launched by the newly emerged Nazis in 2014.”
At the end of the lesson, teachers were instructed to tell children about “new attempts to destroy civilians” and mention the Alley of Angels memorial in Donetsk.
“Today, just as 80 years ago, the world sees new attempts at genocide, and the symbol of this has become the Alley of Angels in Donetsk,” — a technical college in Belgorod region stated.
The lesson was recommended for students in grades 9–11, but in a number of schools it was also held for younger children — sixth graders and even fourth-grade students.
