ABSTRACT
This chapter presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book outlines the severity of Russian neo-Nazi violence in 20019 and developed a typology of different forms of ethnic violence. It provides data on racist skinhead violence in the Russian Federation, showing that it reached its apogee between 2008 and 2009, although it remains a significant problem at the time of writing. The book presents a typology of forms of ethnic violence with historical examples and applies the typology to Russian violence. It presents just such a framework and breaks ethnic violence down into the distinct forms of symbolic violence, lynching, pogrom, and massacre. The book recounts historical and ethnographic work and draws on secondary sources to narrate the development of Russia's neo-Nazi movement. It supplements the content analysis by detailing interviews with skinheads. The book analysis of regional media and using supplementary data from human rights reports and focus groups.
