Alexander Shtromas (; 4 April 1931 in

Kaunas Kaunas (; ) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius, the fourth largest List of cities in the Baltic states by population, city in the Baltic States and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaun ...

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

– 12 June 1999 in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

) was a prominent

n political scientist, dissident, professor and author. Alexander Štromas was a cousin of

Irena Veisaitė Irena Veisaitė (9 January 1928 – 11 December 2020) was a Lithuanian theatre scholar, intellectual and human rights activist. She was awarded the Goethe Medal in 2012 for her contribution to cultural exchange between Germany and Lithuania. L ...

Holocaust survivor Holocaust survivors are people who survived the Holocaust, defined as the persecution and attempted annihilation of the Jews by Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, its collaborators before and during World War II ...

and later Lithuanian scholar of German literature. Irena's mother and Alexander's father were siblings.

Biography

Shtromas was born in

. During the Nazi occupation of Lithuania he was imprisoned in the ghetto. After he was saved from the ghetto, Shtromas was harbored by

Antanas Sniečkus Antanas Sniečkus ( – 22 January 1974) was a Lithuanian communist politician who served as the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Lithuania ('' de facto'' leader of Lithuanian SSR) from 15 August 1940 to his death on 22 January 1974. ...

. He studied at

Vilnius University Vilnius University ( Lithuanian: ''Vilniaus universitetas'') is a public research university, which is the first and largest university in Lithuania, as well as one of the oldest and most prominent higher education institutions in Central and Ea ...

, and later finished at

Moscow State University Moscow State University (MSU), officially M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University,. is a public university, public research university in Moscow, Russia. The university includes 15 research institutes, 43 faculties, more than 300 departments, a ...

. In 1964 Shtromas defended his doctoral thesis in law. Soon afterward Shtromas became a critic of the Soviet regime and was forced to emigrate. In 1973 he settled in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. There, he was appointed to a position in the Department of Peace Studies at the

University of Bradford The University of Bradford is a public research university located in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. A plate glass university, it received its royal charter in 1966, making it the 40th university to be created in Britain, but ...

Adam Curle Charles Thomas William Curle (4 July 1916 – 28 September 2006), better known as Adam Curle, was a British academic, known for his work in social psychology, pedagogy, development studies and peace studies. After holding posts at the University ...

. He later worked at

Salford University The University of Salford is a Public university, public research university in Salford, Greater Manchester, Salford, Greater Manchester, England, west of Manchester city centre. The Royal Technical Institute, Salford, which opened in 1896, be ...

, and, until his death, at

Hillsdale College Hillsdale College is a Private university, private, Conservatism in the United States, conservative, Christian liberal arts college in Hillsdale, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1844 by members of the Free Will Baptists. Women were admi ...

. Aleksandras Shtromas died on 12 June 1999 in the US, and was interred in

Petrašiūnai Cemetery Petrašiūnai Cemetery () is Lithuania's premiere last resting place formally designated for graves of people influential in national history, politics, arts, and science. Location Petrašiūnai Cemetery is located about south-east of the cent ...

in Kaunas. A book with tributes by fellow dissidents, academic colleagues and former students (mainly in English but also in Lithuanian and Russian) was published in 2008 in Lithuania, edited by Leonidas Donskis (XX a. žmogus: Aleksandro Štromo portretai).

Books in English

* * ''Political change and social development: the case of the Soviet Union'' (1981) * ''To fight communism: why and how?'' (1985) * ''The Soviet Union and the challenge of the future'' (edited with Morton A. Kaplan, 1988) * ''The end of "isms"?: reflections on the fate of ideological politics after Communism's collapse'' (edited, 1994) * ''Totalitarianism and the prospects for world order: closing the door on the twentieth century'' (2003)

Articles

* *

References

Aleksandras Štromas
Retrieved on 2008-09-14 1931 births 1999 deaths Vilnius University alumni Moscow State University alumni Lithuanian Jews Lithuanian legal scholars American people of Lithuanian-Jewish descent Lithuanian political scientists Soviet dissidents Burials at Petrašiūnai Cemetery Academics of the University of Bradford Academics of the University of Salford Hillsdale College faculty Peace and conflict scholars 20th-century political scientists {{Lithuania-academic-bio-stub