The Refuseniks and The Party Line on Soviet Jewry *Documentaries*

The documentary Refuseniks appeared in 2008, directed by Laura Bialis, and it delineates the activities that took place in the Soviet Russia during the 1960’s and 1970’s to help those who wanted to emigrate from the Soviet Union to Israel, but were forbidden from doing so. There were activists in the Soviet Union who communicated with international organizations to gain support the right of refuseniks to emigrate out of the Soviet Union. Once they had their exit visas refused, the refuseniks were persecuted in their jobs, as it was considered to be an unpatriotic act to want to leave the Soviet Union.

A well-known character that appears in this film is Natan Sharansky. He was a former refusenik who was sent to jail for his activity of supporting the cause of the refuseniks. Finally, after being released from jail in 1986, he was able to come to Israel where he was reunited with his wife.  He was released by Mikhail Gorbachev due to international pressure from Ronald Reagan. He wrote his lifestory in his memoirs entitled Fear No Evil. The movie presents the scene when Sharansky lands in Israel. As he exits the plane, there is great joy among everyone who was awaiting his arrival. 

The Party Line on Soviet Jewry is a documentary that shows how good life was in the Soviet Union, and that the Jews who were lured to emigrate to other countries were very much grateful to the Soviet Union when they were allowed to come back. There are scences in the movie where Soviet Jews are depicted kissing the land upon which they walk as sign of joy for being allowed to return. It is a propaganda documentary sponsored by the Soviet Union in order to show how successful and happy Soviet Jews were in the Soviet Union. They warn against emigration to Israel, what they regarded as an unpatriotic act against the motherland. This documentary is supposed to bring support for the position of the Soviet Union which was forbidding Jews from emigrating elsewhere. It is meant to improve the image of the Soviet Union locally and internationally.

These two documentaries both highlight the desire of Soviet Jews to leave Soviet Union, but in different ways as they diverge in the perspective they assume. While the documentary Refuseniks shows the positive aspects of leaving the Soviet Union and deems emigration to be a violation of human rights, the documentary The Party Line on Soviet Jewry tries to convince the public union of the negative aspects of leaving the Soviet Union and how emigration proved to be a bad choice for those who emigrate and who actually wanted to come back, and felt blessed to be granted the right to return to the Soviet motherland they had abandoned.