March Event:

(Photo from washingtonpost.com)

Protests, Petroleum and Putinism: The New Politics of Russia

With Laura Henry
John F. and Dorothy H. Magee Associate Professor of Government and Legal Studies, Bowdoin College

REM Center, 93 Main Street, Waterville
Tuesday, March 6, at 11:45 a.m.
Price: $10 (includes half sandwich, soup, dessert and beverages from Jorgensen’s Cafe)
Register:  see registration details below

After the political uncertainty and wild capitalism of the 1990s, Russia’s government under the leadership of Vladimir Putin attempted to create a new social contract which traded steady economic growth and improved standards of living for political quiescence on the part of citizens.  Are we now witnessing the fraying of this broad consensus?  In response to voter fraud in Russia’s December 2011 parliamentary elections, thousands of Russian citizens came out to protest, with some yelling “Russia without Putin.” Are we witnessing an Arab Spring, Russian-style?  Does Russia now have an internet-savvy emerging middle class that will force another effort at democratization?  What do these protests mean for Putin and for Russia as a whole?  This talk will examine these questions, consider the sources of political change and stability in contemporary Russia.

Laura Henry is the John F. and Dorothy H. Magee Associate Professor of Government and Legal Studies at Bowdoin College.  In 2007-08, Prof. Henry spent the academic year as a Visiting Fulbright Scholar at the Center for Independent Social Research in St. Petersburg, Russia.  Her publications include books and articles covering topics ranging from environmental activism to political and social rights in Russia, and she has been invited to speak throughout the country and world.  Prof. Henry is a graduate of Wellesley College, and earned her M.A. and Ph.D. in political science from the University of California, Berkeley.

How To Register:

Please register online, by email (enschill@colby.edu) or by telephone (859-4624) no later than 11 a.m. on Monday, March 5 and include one of the following meal selections:

Curried chicken salad on croissant
Turkey BLT on plain wrap
Veggie on garlic/herb wrap
No lunch

Learn more about our 2011-2012 events!