JRL NEWSWATCH: “A century after Lenin’s death, the USSR’s founder seems to be an afterthought in modern Russia” – AP

“Take a look at Vladimir Lenin’s legacy, 100 years after the first Soviet Union leader’s death shocked Russia.”

“… A century later, the once-omnipresent image of Vladimir Lenin is largely an afterthought in modern Russia …. The Red Square mausoleum where his embalmed corpse lies in an open sarcophagus is no longer a near-mandatory pilgrimage but a site of macabre kitsch, open only 15 hours a week. It draws far fewer visitors than the Moscow Zoo. The goateed face with … intense glare that once seemed unavoidable still stares out from statues, but many of those have been the targets of pranksters and vandals. … [Goose-stepping] honor guards … were removed from outside the mausoleum three decades ago. At the annual military parade through Red Square, the structure is blocked from view by a tribune where dignitaries watch the festivities. Lenin is still there — just harder to see.”

Click here for: “A century after Lenin’s death, the USSR’s founder seems to be an afterthought in modern Russia; Take a look at Vladimir Lenin’s legacy, 100 years after the first Soviet Union leader’s death shocked Russia.” – AP: Jim Heintz