Velvet Revolution and remnants of Communism

I don't know if many of you know, but this week (Tuesday, Nov. 17th) marks the twentieth anniversary of the fall of Communism in the Czech Republic. Last week, I was able to watch the lights and glitter in Berlin, as the city commemorated the fall of the Berlin Wall. U2 was there and thousands of people, from all nations, flocked to the Brandenburg Gate to witness the spectacle and reminisce about the time when freedom was attained and borders were literally torn asunder. Fireworks blasted throughout the night, as Germans toasted to their unity. Expecting to see the same kind of reaction in Prague, I was shocked to discover that there will be no such celebration. There will be no parades. No fireworks. No public parties. No commemorative keys to be shook, or Czech flags to be waved. To the contrary, the celebration will be one of a personal nature; taking place within the homes, quietly out of sight. I guess it would be hard to call it a celebration at all.

It makes sense for a nation of just over 10 million to commemorate their 'Democratic Revolution' in such a quite way. After all, they suffered quietly. Germany has always been intriguing for the western world, and during the reign of totalitarian communism, it was split, straddling the Iron Curtain. The Czechs on the other hand, they are Slavic, so I guess it was only fitting that a Slavic nation would follow the 'Slavic mother', Russia. Yeah, to western eyes, it was unfortunate that the Czechoslovak nation, a former Democracy, was under the rule of Stalin, but they were always 'in the East'. The interest just wasn't there.

Still, my mind wonders, why don't Czechs take more pride in the fact that their 'Velvet Revolution' was a motivation to the whole world? It was completely non-violent. It was started by young students. It motivated the masses. And, it toppled an entrenched, oppressive governing body that lied and deceived its people. From the outside perspective, it was a revolution of "The Powerless" and should be commemorated as one of the greatest, human-rights triumphs of the 20th century. Yet, in the paper today, almost half of Czechs polled claimed to have 'no interest in commemorating, or celebrating the Revolution.' This, for me, is quite unfortunate.

This past weekend, a documentary was shown in Policka, entitled, "The Power of the Powerless." The film was American and it was not made for Czech viewing audiences. The film discussed the developments of the revolution and gave a historical overview of the nature of communist rule in Czechoslovakia. At the end, the documentarian began to criticize the Czech people (mainly the younger generations) for being infatuated with 'superficiality' and lacking any kind of 'rooted ideology'. He himself, a man who was witness to the Velvet Revolution of 1989, expressed shock and disbelief when he found that many young Czechs didn't even know that the Velvet revolution existed (almost unbelievable). He openly asked, "What is happening in Czech schools? What memories are they portraying in the society at large?"

In thinking a little more deeply about the fact that the Velvet Revolution here is met with an alarming level of apathy, I guess I must take quick glance and look at Western culture today. It seems to me that many Czechs are pretty fed up with their petty, often-bickering political leaders. In fact, just two weeks ago, there was an article in a newspaper, where the writer professed the necessity of a revolution every 20 years, to 'clean the system of the nation.' Also, I find that many in the older demographic are constantly fighting in a modern world that moves too quickly and is full of deception, tumult and violence. I think, that the reality and difficulty of building up a new western-style, capitalistic Democracy, from the rusted hulk of Socialism, has hit Czechs. Maybe they thought the transition would be easy and that life would automatically be 'better' from the get-go? In addition to the constant fluctuation of the market and the uncertainty of jobs, many Czechs feel bombarded with American pop culture, which is exported at an astounding rate. I've heard it described as "American Imperialism", which often gets me chuckling, if not annoyed. But, I guess there is something to be said here. If the people legitimately do feel threatened, be it from a cultural, monetary or emotional standpoint, then what is there to like about free-flowing, all-consuming capitalism of the Western world?-- which to many here is still viewed as an 'import'. In this light, maybe the Velvet Revolution looks a little negative: a group of naive students who managed to overthrow normalcy.

The last aspect I think of when pondering the memory of Czechs, is that some of them might not remember Communism as being that bad. After all, it was very clear from the start that the Communist Party had a clear message for the people of Czechoslovakia: "If you leave the business of government to us, we will leave you alone. You will prosper: you will have a car, a house, a job and enough money for your family." And, really, I think for most people, the fact that their intellectual, religious and civic freedoms were given up in a trade-off for security, was just a fact of life. If there was suffering, it was done behind closed doors, not on the street. And, just like that, Communism in Czechoslovakia became boring for many who lived it; slowly, but surely, the Communist machine manipulated information and re-focused the worldview of an entire nation. The waterfall was reached by incremental paddle strokes, not through fast-running, white-water. Maybe for some, the Communist promise of security still holds their mind captive? Just today, President Vaclav Klaus claimed that reason for continuous fear during the period of Communist Normalization in the 1980's was not there; instead, it is a recreation of those trying to re-tell history. But, how can Klaus know this for certain? A nation that was told to suffer indoors, is a nation severed from neighbors and community. It turns into a culture of distrust. And, this is how the Communists ruled.

Maybe the reason no one is celebrating the Velvet Revolution is because the effects of being "separated and conquered" still linger. No one really knows what the Velvet Revolution means to the nation, because no one really knows what Communism meant to the nation. And, in this way, the Red Star is still victorious (at least for some).