In this podcast, St. Julian-Varnon expands on her current academic work, which focuses on the study of the black diaspora in the Soviet Union and the analysis of the influence of the ideological narrative on the Soviet citizens' perceptions of Africans into children's books.

Together with Dora Vasilakou, Julian Varnon spoke about the main characteristics of the Soviet children's books before and after the 1917 revolution. How writers and illustrators of children's literature portrayed people of African descent and Africa in the early Soviet era and how their imaginary narrative changed during the decades.

Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon is a Ph.D. student of History and a Presidential Ph.D. fellow at the University of Pennsylvania.

The podcast is part of the Azbuka Strikes Back public program in the Pickle bar. The program is supported by Haupstadtkulturfonds.