[LINK] Why did Estonians start to dislike Russians?

[rfmcdonald]

Olaf Mertelsmann's "How the Russians Turn into the Image of the 'National Enemy' of the Estonians" (PDF format) examines a detailed examination of how Estonians came to dislike Russians--both Estonian Russians and the Russian state--by the early 21st century. In the early 20st century, after all, the most unpopular ethnic group among Estonians was the aristocratic caste of Baltic Germans who dominated the country. Through an examination of oral histories and KGB surveillance, Mertelsmann demonstrates convincingly that Stalinist purges, abuses by Red Army soldiers, and very unpopular Soviet-sponsored Russophone immigration ruined Estonians' image of Russia and Russians.