Fitty years ago, on January 24, 1924, Vladimir
Ilyich Lenin died. He was only 54. His short life
span serves to underscore his incredible accomplish-
ments in revolutionary thought and leadership, a
legacy which grows stronger each year.

Lenin, born Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov, became in-
volved in anti-Czarist protest movements in his
student days, actions for which he was arrested and
expelled from Kazan University. ;

He was restricted to his home town, and for sev-
eral years conducted Marxist study classes and parti-
cipated in other revolutionary activity. He then re-'
applied for entrance to Kazan University, but was
turned down. In St. Petersburg he was prevented from
attending St. Petersburg University but was permit-.
ted to take an examination which he passed and:
through which he received a law degree.

He continued his revolutionary activity and even-
tually was exiled to Siberia. Expecting assassination,
Lenin left the country but led the Bolshevist move-’
ment from abroad. He returned on the eve of the Octo-
ber Revolution and was socialist Russia’s first leader.
He outlined his country’s peace-policy and its ap-
proach to the nationalities question on the basis of
self-determination of the many peoples within Russia
and on its borders. Under Lenin’s leadeship, the
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was formed in
1922.

The Soviet Union’s policy of detente is directly
derived from Lenin’s introduction of the policy of
peaceful coexistence. The Soviet ‘‘peace offensive”
springs from Leninist foundations. And it is upen
these foundations that other socialist nations have
emerged, that the worid will build peace and all its
countries advance toward socialism.

"i

Lenin proclaims Soviet power, Smolny, in painting by V. A. Serov.

The Ulyanov family. Lenin, extreme right, is 9 years old. Lenin watching the trial of the first Soviet slecitic plow; Meussw, 1921:

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 1974—PAGE 8