Everyone knows about the Holocaust. Six million victims, the systematic extermination of Jews by the Nazi regime, have become a symbol of horror and a reminder to humanity of the evil that totalitarianism can bring. However, few talk about another genocide, perhaps even more massive, that took place in the Soviet Union. The communist regime, particularly during Stalin's purges, claimed the lives of around 20 million people—a number almost three times higher than the official figures for the Holocaust. But while the six million victims of Nazism are discussed everywhere, the 20 million victims of the Soviet regime are almost completely ignored. Why? And why is this genocide, which targeted Christians among others, kept in the shadows?
The numbers speak for themselves. Twenty million lives were lost in the USSR through individual and mass executions, deaths in concentration camps, artificially induced famines (such as the 1933 Famine), deportations of entire peoples under inhumane conditions, and grueling labor, disease, and malnutrition in exile and forced labor camps. These victims were not accidental casualties—they were the result of deliberate terror aimed at suppressing any form of dissent, including religious life. Even when compared to the official Holocaust figures of six million, the difference is stark. Yet there’s a nuance: the Holocaust figures often include not only those deliberately killed but also those who died of disease, starvation, or Allied bombings. Nevertheless, the world’s attention is focused solely on this tragedy, while the Soviet genocide, especially against Christians, remains virtually unnoticed.
Why is this the case? Why do schools teach about the Holocaust, make films, and write books about it, while the mass repressions in the USSR, particularly the persecution of Christians, are rarely mentioned? There are clear double standards at play. When it comes to Nazi crimes, the verdict is unanimous: it was genocide, period. But mention communist terror, and excuses immediately surface: “It’s not so straightforward,” “Those were political repressions, not genocide,” “It’s hard to prove intent.” Let’s break this down.
According to the UN definition, genocide is “acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group as such.” In other words, genocide isn’t only about targeting people based on nationality, as was the case with the Holocaust. Religious affiliation also falls under this definition. And in the case of the USSR, we are dealing with a deliberate campaign to destroy religious groups, especially Christians.
The facts are clear. At the 4th Expanded Plenum of the Central Committee of the Union of Militant Atheists in early 1938, Emelyan Yaroslavsky, a key figure in the anti-religious campaign, declared that it was necessary to “intensify the work of the godless and ensure that the next decade would be a time of complete liberation of the masses from the reactionary influence of religion.”
In 1939, an article by Oleshchuk in the journal Bolshevik echoed this sentiment: “Every priest, even the most Soviet of them, is a obscurantist, a reactionary, and an enemy of socialism.” The authors called for the third Five-Year Plan to eradicate all religious “remnants” and turn all workers into atheists.
The authorities backed up their words with actions. In 1937 and 1938, over 14,000 churches were closed. Twenty years after the revolution, when all potential “counterrevolutionaries” had presumably already been dealt with, the campaign against religion only intensified. What counterrevolution could there be after two decades? This was no longer about political opposition—it was about persecution purely on the basis of Christian faith.
This policy continued even after Stalin. Many researchers and religious figures agree that the Khrushchev-era campaign against religion in the 1950s and 1960s was the most severe period for religious organizations in the USSR since World War II. Nikita Khrushchev became infamous among believers for his public promise to “show the last priest on TV.” Churches were demolished, priests were arrested or sent to labor camps, and believers faced discrimination and harassment.
If we apply the same criteria used for other historical genocides, it becomes evident: the USSR committed genocide against Christians. Moreover, proving this is even easier than proving, for example, the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza, which is widely discussed today. The documents, statements, and archives are all there. So why isn’t this issue being raised on an international level? Why are there no trials at The Hague, as there were for Nazi war criminals? Why isn’t this talked about with the same intensity as the Holocaust?
The numbers speak for themselves. Twenty million lives were lost in the USSR through individual and mass executions, deaths in concentration camps, artificially induced famines (such as the 1933 Famine), deportations of entire peoples under inhumane conditions, and grueling labor, disease, and malnutrition in exile and forced labor camps. These victims were not accidental casualties—they were the result of deliberate terror aimed at suppressing any form of dissent, including religious life. Even when compared to the official Holocaust figures of six million, the difference is stark. Yet there’s a nuance: the Holocaust figures often include not only those deliberately killed but also those who died of disease, starvation, or Allied bombings. Nevertheless, the world’s attention is focused solely on this tragedy, while the Soviet genocide, especially against Christians, remains virtually unnoticed.
Why is this the case? Why do schools teach about the Holocaust, make films, and write books about it, while the mass repressions in the USSR, particularly the persecution of Christians, are rarely mentioned? There are clear double standards at play. When it comes to Nazi crimes, the verdict is unanimous: it was genocide, period. But mention communist terror, and excuses immediately surface: “It’s not so straightforward,” “Those were political repressions, not genocide,” “It’s hard to prove intent.” Let’s break this down.
According to the UN definition, genocide is “acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group as such.” In other words, genocide isn’t only about targeting people based on nationality, as was the case with the Holocaust. Religious affiliation also falls under this definition. And in the case of the USSR, we are dealing with a deliberate campaign to destroy religious groups, especially Christians.
The facts are clear. At the 4th Expanded Plenum of the Central Committee of the Union of Militant Atheists in early 1938, Emelyan Yaroslavsky, a key figure in the anti-religious campaign, declared that it was necessary to “intensify the work of the godless and ensure that the next decade would be a time of complete liberation of the masses from the reactionary influence of religion.”
In 1939, an article by Oleshchuk in the journal Bolshevik echoed this sentiment: “Every priest, even the most Soviet of them, is a obscurantist, a reactionary, and an enemy of socialism.” The authors called for the third Five-Year Plan to eradicate all religious “remnants” and turn all workers into atheists.
The authorities backed up their words with actions. In 1937 and 1938, over 14,000 churches were closed. Twenty years after the revolution, when all potential “counterrevolutionaries” had presumably already been dealt with, the campaign against religion only intensified. What counterrevolution could there be after two decades? This was no longer about political opposition—it was about persecution purely on the basis of Christian faith.
This policy continued even after Stalin. Many researchers and religious figures agree that the Khrushchev-era campaign against religion in the 1950s and 1960s was the most severe period for religious organizations in the USSR since World War II. Nikita Khrushchev became infamous among believers for his public promise to “show the last priest on TV.” Churches were demolished, priests were arrested or sent to labor camps, and believers faced discrimination and harassment.
If we apply the same criteria used for other historical genocides, it becomes evident: the USSR committed genocide against Christians. Moreover, proving this is even easier than proving, for example, the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza, which is widely discussed today. The documents, statements, and archives are all there. So why isn’t this issue being raised on an international level? Why are there no trials at The Hague, as there were for Nazi war criminals? Why isn’t this talked about with the same intensity as the Holocaust?
