In the era of great changes that ended the seventy-year history of the Soviet Union, there were a number of key figures who became a symbol of this time. Yuri Afanasiev - Russian politician, scientist and public figure is one of them. He left this world on September 14, 2015. Which is another reason to take a closer look at the personality of this extraordinary person.
Biography Facts
The future Russian politician Yuri Afanasiev was born on September 5, 1934 in the small Volga village of Maina. Very little is known about the young years of the future "foreman of perestroika". But the fact that after graduating from high school he went to the capital and entered the most prestigious university in the Soviet Union deserves attention. After studying at the Faculty of History of Moscow State University, he was sent by the Komsomol order to distant Siberia to build the Krasnoyarsk hydroelectric power station.
Yuri Afanasiev spent about nine years at this shock construction site. His duties as a Komsomol functionary included the reception and household arrangement of young people sent to construction from all regions of the USSR. In 1966, Yuri Afanasiev, whose biography at the first stage was quite ordinary,returned to Moscow. He had big things ahead of him.
Scientific work
After returning to the capital, the career of a Komsomol worker went up. However, he decided to change the nomenklatura service in the party and Komsomol bodies to scientific activity. In 1971, Yuri Afanasiev completed his postgraduate studies at the Academy of Social Sciences under the Central Committee of the CPSU. After that, he began to conduct active scientific and administrative activities. Twice he leaves for an internship in France at the famous Sorbonne University. His publications are recognized in the scientific world, which ensures successful career advancement at the Institute of World History of the USSR Academy of Sciences.
He becomes a doctor of historical sciences, a professor, and is elected an academician of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences. In 1983, Yuri Afanasiev became a member of the editorial board of the Kommunist magazine. Conducts active social work, speaks in the media.
Going into politics
In the second half of the eighties, radical changes took place in the social and political life of the Soviet Union. New people are entering the forefront of the political scene, among whom was Yuri Afanasiev. His biography makes a turn along with the whole country. Of course, this was no accident. Yuri Afanasiev came to a turning point in the history of the country as an authoritative public figure, whose opinion was taken into account. This reputation was due to his publications on sensitive social and historical topics. Afanasyev's articles in Novy Mir and"Spark" enjoyed attention and often caused heated discussions among the thinking part of the Soviet society.
Not everyone agreed with the historian, but his ideas about the need for fundamental changes in all spheres of social and economic life of Soviet society fell into the prepared soil and sprouted. In 1989, Yuri Afanasyev was elected a people's deputy of the USSR. At the famous first congress, he takes part in the Interregional Deputy Group.
Foreman perestroika
In the late eighties, Yuri Afanasyev, whose photo could often be seen on the front pages of periodicals, becomes one of those with whom public opinion associates the changes taking place in the country. One of the journalists came up with a slightly ironic definition for them - "foremen of perestroika." But Yuri Afanasiev himself preferred to distance himself from such a title. Subsequently, he repeatedly emphasized that he had always been critical of Mikhail Gorbachev and the direction in which the socio-political system of the Soviet Union was being reformed.
But be that as it may, it was Yuri Afanasiev who became the author of the famous definition of "aggressively obedient majority", which he characterized the conservative part of the deputies of the first congress. This apt expression has firmly entered the modern political lexicon.
Recent years
In the 2000s, Yuri Afanasiev moved away from activepolitical activity. He was not enthusiastic about the results of the changes that had taken place in the country. He often spoke in the media criticizing the course of the modern political leadership of the country and expressed support for the leaders of the non-systemic opposition. But his statements did not cause a significant public outcry. The authority and influence of the politician are in the past.
Nevertheless, it cannot be said that he was forgotten. This is evidenced by the number of people who came on September 17, 2015 for a civil memorial service at the Sakharov Center. Yuri Afanasiev was buried at the Ostashkovsky cemetery in the city of Mytishchi in the Moscow region.
