The cult of Russianicity: mobilising anti-fascist affect in Putin’s Russia

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article argues that after the Russian presidential election in 2012, the Kremlin mobilised a populist, anti-fascist affect called ‘Russianicity’ that Vladimir Putin used to help legitimate his third term as president. This article also traces how this state-led effort intertwined with the consumer commodity cult known as ‘Putiniana’ which functioned as an index of changing public sentiment towards Putin. Putin’s cultivation of the ribbon of Saint George as a sign of victory against fascism during his first two terms is examined in conjunction with a Putiniana marked by an ambivalence about Russian national identity and economic prosperity. In the wake of economic decline, mass protests against Putin’s third presidency, and the 2014 Ukrainian Revolution, Russian state-controlled television manufactured a fascist threat from Ukraine intended to generate fear and panic. Subsequently, Putiniana more frequently invoked the ribbon of Saint George, which Putin leveraged to position himself as a unique leader capable of dealing with the fascist menace. This development culminated in Putin’s annexation of the Crimean peninsula and consequently led to a new stage of Putiniana signifying the restoration of Russia back to geopolitical greatness.