Russians in Latvia

 Since the end of the USSR in 1991, Latvia’s Russian speakers have been living under what Kevin Platt calls, “border conditions.” That is, a life in the liminal space between Latvia and the Russian Federation, the West and the East, a liberal present and a communist past. And all under the darkened shadow of a more revanchist Russia at war in Ukraine. And how do Russophone Latvians navigate this contradictory life? This week on the Eurasian Knot, Sean and Rusana talk with Kevin Platt about his new book, Border Conditions: Russian-Speaking Latvians Between World Orders. In the interview we discuss how Russian identity, and how Russophone Latvians make sense of their bifurcated life through cultural expression.    Guest: Kevin M. F. Platt is Professor of Russian and East European Studies and Chair of the Doctoral Program in Comparative Literature and Literary Theory at the University of Pennsylvania. He is the founder and organizer of the poetry translation symposium Your Language My Ear. His new book is Border Conditions: Russian-Speaking Latvians Between World Orders published by Cornell University Press. Send us your sounds! https://euraknot.org/contact/  Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/euraknot  Knotty News: https://eurasianknot.substack.com/ The Knot’s Nest: https://eurasian-knot.sellfy.store/  Website: https://euraknot.org/