From 1929 to 1958, hundreds of thousands of prisoners from across the Soviet Union were sent to the Komi Republic in Russia’s Far North. After their release, many left the region. But many also stayed in Komi and rebuilt their life under the shadow of the prison camp. And by the late 1980s, many of these former prisoners began writing memoirs, collecting and preserving documents, and building organizations to work through, publicize and house these materials. The result was the Komi branch of Memorial. Crucial to these efforts was the “camp brotherhood” that bound former prisoners. The shared experience of the camp became the basis for forming informal networks, mutual support, and collective solidarity. These showed that even in horrible, life threatening conditions, people still find companionship and support. And it is this, Tyler Kirk says, served as the foundation for gulag memory projects in Komi. The Eurasian Knot spoke to Tyler Kirk about his book After the Gulag: A History of Memory in Russia’s Far North to get the full story. Guest: Tyler Kirk is Associate Professor and the Arthur T. Fathauer Chair in History at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. He’s the author of After the Gulag: A History of Memory in Russia’s Far North published by Indiana University Press. Send us your sounds! https://euraknot.org/contact/  Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/euraknot  Knotty News: https://eurasianknot.substack.com/ Website: https://euraknot.org/