Selective Memories

My initial thoughts before leaving the U.S. lead me to believe that over time, the view of communism in Europe has become less accurate and become more positive. We have talked to many people in both Hungary and the Czech Republic about the challenges democracy has brought to these countries. These societies no longer have a sense of stability when it comes to keeping a job or putting food on the table. The longing for a stable job allows people to wonder and consider communism in a positive light. But what about the terrorism that occured? What about the other negative things that came with the system? After being here, explanations have jumped out at me. It is not that people think of communism in a positive way now, but part of their history is slowly being forgotten. These societies have somewhat of a selective memory. At the 1956 Hungarian Revolution Research Center in Budapest, we asked what students learn about the '56 revolution in school. Their response was that the students don't really learn about the revolution in school and they aren't interested in the subject. In Prague, we visited Wenceslas Square and were surprised to see a memorial for Michael Jackson. Instead of memorializing Jan Palach and appreciating the Czech history, the square was smothered by western culture. It seems as though the people are trying to forget about some important pieces of their past. The more time that goes by, the more people are forgetting the truth about communist rule. It is clear that the younger generations are simply uneducated on the subject of communism and the schools don't teach them the immensly important parts of their history.

-Sandy