And After That We All became Like Brothers

Abstract

This article examines how emotions create an affective solidarity in a pro-governmental youth movement in Russia. The article shows that despite a formally strong affiliation with the aims of political socialization of youth in Russia, young activists from Vse doma movement describe their participation in a political project through the joy of being together, communication ( obschenie), emotional flows ( dvizhuha), bodily and risky practices, rather than ideological values. Drawing on the scholarship on emotional politics and social movements, the article switches the lens from the political to emotional and embodied sense of engagement. The discussion in this article is based on ethnographic fieldwork and interviews with young people. The article proposes the notion of ‘affective solidarity’ as a useful lens for the analysis of youth political activism.