Acknowledgements

No one writes a book alone. For this manuscript, I am indebted to many amazing people who shared their wisdom with me. I want to thank my co-authors – the activists who shared their experiences and whose interviews the reader can hopefully hear while reading this book: Medina Bazargali, Suinbike Suleimenova, Saule Suleimenova, Assem Zhapisheva, Fariza Ospan, Dimash Alzhanov, and many others who preferred to remain anonymous. Without them, this book would not be possible. Every word in this book is dedicated to them.

I want to thank John Haslam and the whole team at Cambridge University Press for taking such good care of this project, and the two anonymous reviewers who offered a lot of food for thought and excellent points for making the manuscript better. I hope one day we can go for a coffee and discuss authoritarian regimes even more. I am indebted to Marlene Laruelle and Laura Adams, who read earlier versions of the full manuscript and offered helpful advice and encouragement. The last chapter of the book is a slightly reworked article I co-authored with Marlene Laruelle, which was published in Post-Soviet Affairs in April 2022, right after the Bloody January protests. Working with Marlene is always a pleasure, and I am incredibly indebted to her for her mentorship over the years. I also want to thank Taylor and Francis for their permission to reprint the article here as Chapter 8. In the Sociology Department at Cambridge, I want to thank Professor Manali Desai, who encouraged me to pursue this project and offered a lot of helpful advice for developing it. I received so much support and great advice during these years from my supervisor Dr David Lane, Prof Hazem Kandil, Prof Monica Morena-Figueroa, Dr Ella McPherson, Dr Ali Meghji, Lara Gisborne, and many of my colleagues. I am very grateful to them for their advice and support. My friends at Homerton College were my integral support system. I am especially indebted to Fernanda Gallo, who powered me through the editorial process, and Marta Magalhaes-Wallace, who always inspires me in all questions of good writing and good ethnography.

My friends and colleagues offered much support throughout. I want to thank Botakoz Kassymbekova, Assel Tutumlu, Asel Doolotkeldiyeva, Erica Marat, Nodira Kholmatova, Gulzat Botoeva, Zarina Mukanova, Askhat Akhmediyarov, and Aigerim Kapar for support, inspiration, and encouragement along the way. In Almaty, the home of Saule Suleimenova and Kuanysh Bazargaliev was a space of inspiration and endless discussions that in many ways inspired me to write this book. I want to express my gratitude to the whole team at the Tselinniy cultural centre in Almaty, who became my friends, who supported my forthcoming book project on protest art that will hopefully be out shortly. Jama, Alima, Adiya, and Bart offered warm companionship and discussion points that enriched my thinking along these two big strands of my research. My students in Cambridge offered a wonderful space for discussions and questions that helped develop this book in many ways. Finally, God bless my favourite band, The Killers, whose songs kept me going even in the darkest times. They were great company in a cold Cambridge library or in the quietness of my apartment.

I am indebted to my family for their endless support and care. My father, Prof Turarbek Kudaibergenov, provided me with many sources and ideas to develop this book, but most importantly his text messages at any point of the day, checking in on me and my writing, greatly encouraged me, and his example as a tireless writer and researcher continuously inspires me in my own work. My mother, Raushan Ibragimova-Kudaibergenova, became my true editor and co-writer and followed every step in developing this project. Our long conversations about my writing and about my arguments helped hugely in shaping this manuscript. This project would not have been possible without my parents’ unconditional love and support. Karima, Kaisar, Mansour, and Luna always offered good company and joy between writing and researching sessions. I want to thank my brother Kuanysh and his wife Marzhan, my aunts, and my cousins for their huge support and many laughs at family dinners. Special thanks to my sister-cousin Malika and my aunts Roza and Maskhuda Ibragimovas for their support.