2025/06/21 by Leonid Peisakhin, Didac Queralt · 1 voice
Social Sciences · #Culture, Economy, and Development Studies #Political Conflict and Governance #Religion and Society Interactions
paper · doi:10.1177/00104140251349644
openalex publication_date 2025/06/21 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/05/21
Most work on the legacies of violence studies mass repression. In this paper, we explore the longterm effects of selective repression of local elites on ordinary community members who had not been subject to direct repression. Drawing on the literature on the legacy of violence against civilians, we hypothesize that elite-targeted repression creates a political backlash in the affected communities. Examining the legacy of Nazi-era repression of Catholic clergy in Bavaria we ask whether historical repression against Catholic priests is associated with higher support for Christian Democrats after WWII. We find that municipalities where Catholic priests had been repressed are more likely to vote for Christian Democrats in the post-war elections. The legacy of priest repression on voting behavior persists into the present, although its magnitude wanes overtime. These findings suggest that repression of elites leaves lasting intergenerational legacies on mass political and social behavior.