Bronze Soldier Statue in Tallinn

Estonia

By Jade

In late April 2007, a series of violent street protests involving arson and looting erupted over plans to relocate a bronze statue of a Red Army soldier from a park in central Tallinn to a military cemetery on the outskirts of the city.  Known as the Bronze Nights, these protests exposed underlying tensions between Estonia’s ethnic Russian and Estonian communities, with consequences for diplomatic and trade relations between Tallinn and Moscow. This case study will highlight the lasting consequences of instrumentalizing historic legacies for short-term political gain and will review alternative responses that can help anticipate and avert unnecessary social and political tensions.

For the case study click here.