“Not alms are needed, but organized assistance”: the creation of special bodies for the protection of childhood in Bashkiria in the 1920s

The article considers the problem of social protection of children in Bashkiria in the 1920s. The relevance of the study is due to the insufficient knowledge of this problem in regional historiography. The novelty lies in the fact that the article for the first time introduces archival sources into scientific circulation, characterizing the main aspects of the topic under study. Based on archival and published sources, the formation of a legal and regulatory framework for the social protection of children and the creation of special bodies is shown. Attention is paid to the emergence of child homelessness in the Autonomous Republic, the scale of which expanded under the influence of the consequences of the famine of 1921-1922, and the spread of epidemics, which led to the creation of special bodies and the orientation of the activities of the emerging structures to combat this social phenomenon. The difficulties and omissions encountered, and the action taken by the local authorities to make the necessary decisions are highlighted. The conclusion is drawn that the creation of special bodies for the protection of children in Bashkiria in the years under review has undergone a difficult process of formation and further development to fulfil the tasks assigned to them, which were of national importance. The implementation of the necessary measures to improve the lives of children in the region and eliminate child neglect had its own significant peculiarities. Despite all efforts, towards the end of the period under study, the leadership of the Autonomous Republic was forced to acknowledge that these tasks remained unresolved.