In the post-Soviet years, as May Day approached, people began to ask questions quite often about what we were actually celebrating. More recently, May 1 has been de facto monopolized by left-wing political forces, including semi-marginal ones, who held demonstrations vaguely reminiscent of Soviet times on that day. However, it’s just too far away. Now that the May Day demonstrations have been canceled entirely (perhaps quite plausibly) for national security reasons, this question seems even more relevant.
In the minds of many, especially the older generation, the Soviet model of a nationwide celebration still remains, with the indispensable crossing of thousands of columns carrying slogans and banners on Red Square. The demonstrators, who passed by smiling and without any forced amusement, swallowed the “current leaders” of the country standing on the mausoleum with their eyes. All this environment seems to be irrevocably a thing of the past. What about instead? And do you need something instead? Is it necessary to play the rebuilding of the USSR forever in this episode too?
May 1 had a purely class character from the very beginning. Its history, if any, has been going on since 1886; The main requirement at the time was the requirement to introduce an eight-hour working day. In this sense, the slogans put forward by the workers in the first decades of the May Day demonstrations have already been fulfilled and overstuffed in all developed countries. As they said earlier, in the interests of a working man, there was almost nothing to fight on a large scale. The general growth of the labor market and welfare in modern economic conditions has solved the main problems in this regard.
Later in 1886, as a result of clashes with the police, large numbers of demonstrators were arrested and seven even sentenced to death. In 1889, at the first Congress of the Second International, held in Paris, it was decided to organize annual May Day demonstrations. Since then, this day has become International Workers Solidarity Day. Western, primarily European revolutionary fashion, as well as socialist ideas themselves from the West, as strange as it may sound today, quickly began to gain popularity in Russia. Already in 1891, the first May 1 in St. It took place in Petersburg. In pre-revolutionary times, such acts were a mixed nature of political meetings and picnics, as well as chants, drinking and folk festivals.
The holiday in Soviet Russia actually acquired its brightest and legal status after 1918, when its format was established. Until 1968, with a pause in 1942-1944, a military parade was held in Red Square on May 1, as well as on November 7, the anniversary of the October Revolution.
But, perhaps, time has passed, one can appreciate what a peaceful gesture it was for the time of the then “new” General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev, who decided in November that a once-a-year military showdown was sufficient. It is worth noting that Brezhnev himself was a front-line soldier and knew what war really was.
Trying to fill May Day to its limit with political meaning, the CPSU published the slogans and calls that should have been received by the May Day demonstrations across the country in the main newspapers of the country a few days before the holiday. place. It goes without saying that the list is complete and no other slogans or banners may be displayed at the show. Of course, for many Russians today, all this style and expression of slogans will seem like official “bird language”, from which it is almost impossible to get to the literal meaning of what they really mean. But experienced party bureaucrats, on the contrary, scrutinized the texts of the approved slogans to see if there were any new trends or nuances to the party’s leadership line. Remember, the USSR was a very “dogmatic” state. In fact, it’s basically dead. Of unshakable dogmas in a changing world.
For example, by May 1986 (Gorbachev had recently come to power), exactly 40 appeals of the CPSU Central Committee were approved. It is almost impossible for an inexperienced eye to see any signs of impending perestroika in them. However, already in appeal number 3 it says: “Working Land of the Soviets! Thanks to the acceleration of the socio-economic development of the country – to the achievement of a new qualitative state of society, to the victory of communist ideals! The term “acceleration” is legitimated here. And the slogan number 5 is “all-round development of socialism is the vital business of everyone!” Behind the words that can be read by an experienced apparatchik, they say, it turns out that certainly something else needs to be improved, and not everything in the “advanced socialism” built under Brezhnev.
Regarding the newly held 27th Congress of the CPSU, it was said that he displayed an “innovative spirit”. Science and education workers are called upon to “increase their contribution to the acceleration of scientific and technological progress, to the radical reconstruction of the national economy”! The call to scientists – “to make revolutionary discoveries and inventions in engineering and technology”, even at 9th place in the list, was higher than the call to representatives of such working professions as machine builders, energy engineers, transport workers, metallurgists. , chemists etc. For everyone, the CPSU had its own “kind word of parting”. This was an important nuance at that time. Separately, to department employees “to resolutely rebuild the way and methods of work, to abolish departmentalism, narrow-mindedness and bureaucracy!”
The call to Soviet soldiers “to prudently protect the peaceful creative work of our people” was only in the 26th place. Also, as expected, there were already slogans and calls regarding international relations. Fraternal greetings were conveyed to the peoples of the socialist countries. The peoples of Africa, Asia and Latin America (they were always en masse in the CPSU documents) were encouraged above to “raise the flag of solidarity in the fight against imperialist exploitation”. And the working class of the capitalist countries (but they always came after the socialist countries, African countries, etc.) wanted to “continue the stubborn struggle against the oppression of the monopolies for their rights and vital interests.” Of course, the slogan of ending the arms race and “creating a comprehensive international security system” was not avoided. The term “new political thought” has not yet come into play. All the peoples of the world “a determined struggle against the imperialist policy of aggression and violence! “To ensure that beds of military danger are eliminated!” At the same time, the “Leninist foreign policy of the Soviet Union”, “the policy of strengthening the peace and security of the peoples, broad international cooperation!”
Can you imagine something similar today? From the outside it seems possible: they regrouped some government employees with pre-made banners. Although in our time such events occur, as a rule, locally and statically. For example, without parades in the stadium and on the streets. The only exception is the “Immortal Regiment”, but this is a completely different event in spirit and meaning.
And so, in principle, behind all May Day demonstrations was exactly the same thing – a strictly centralized administrative principle. Although it was possible to express that he wanted to go to the May Day show voluntarily in order not to go to the November show in the cold, it was impossible to come to them that way. In any case, you were required to register with the workplace (or register in a “voluntary-mandatory order”). “Aliens do not walk here”, specially responsible persons with red armbands on their sleeves (sometimes called the “right wing”) ensured that no foreigners tied themselves to “our” column and harmonized throughout the regiment. Red Square
Many do not understand this now. But they do not understand that, despite all the imperatives, this is combined with the real joy that comes from walking on Red Square and seeing Yourself. Especially to get close to the Mausoleum. Whatever they say, it was a vacation feeling. The May Day columns, although officially an order, were not boring columns of prisoners who were exiled there according to the order. Go and get to know the mysterious Russian soul right now.
After the collapse of the USSR, the holiday lost its former political meaning, taking the highly apolitical name of Spring and Labor Day. By the way, his most important slogan was also a “triptych”, long inherited from the USSR – “Peace! Business! May!” Moreover, no one was embarrassed by the seeming internal dissonance between spring, which seemed conducive to leisure, walks, and carelessness, and work, which coincided with spring, except that it took place in the fresh air. Let’s say on a garden plot. And in this sense, May 1 can be safely called Gardeners’ Day or All-Russian Solidarity Day for all gardeners in the country.
As a matter of fact, in the old understanding, the working class certainly lost its title of “most progressive and most advanced” in the Soviet era, due to the conditions under which the modern economy was built on completely different principles. In this sense, the word “work” does not fully encompass all those previously called workers. Labor is more associated with manual or automatic labor in the mass consciousness, but still associated with a type of production. Yet a significant, if not all, of the GDP of the modern economy (unfortunately not yet in our case) is generated by what was once called the “creative class” by the famous sociologist Richard Florida. However, imagining a May Day demonstration, for example, under slogans that inspire IT people to “be more creative for the good of the Motherland”, somehow does not work out very well.
On the other hand, if you dream of an attempt to rename the May Day holiday, you will certainly encounter some kind of semantic and logical impasse.
No, of course, you can entrust this matter to a cool, strictly government office, or you can find a tender for the best rebranding, entrust it to the country’s best PR professionals and loyalty-tested political strategists. But in the end, there will be talk among the public that the case was “launched and withdrawn”. It’s like a task from above to “invent” a national idea. In general, however, it is quite clear that national ideas are not created from above. They are largely self-born, despite the active participation of those called national elites who are ready to follow the declared meanings and principles.
Therefore, regarding May 1, it is better not to bother with any rebranding at all, but to leave everything as it is and let everything work out. With the exception of Victory Day, which is now separate and wonderful for our country, the strongest relationship with the May holidays is associated with gardening. And if you believe the saying that a short Russian summer is a small life, then May Day is, in a sense, the beginning of this life.
Let it stay that way. Goodbye. And when – and if! – new meanings will emerge in the “big and long life” of our society, followed by new demands on what to fill the holiday with, and it was invented by workers from the once infinitely distant American city of Chicago.
The author expresses his personal opinion, which may not coincide with the editors’ position.
Source: Gazeta
Dolores Johnson is a voice of reason at “Social Bites”. As an opinion writer, she provides her readers with insightful commentary on the most pressing issues of the day. With her well-informed perspectives and clear writing style, Dolores helps readers navigate the complex world of news and politics, providing a balanced and thoughtful view on the most important topics of the moment.