Prague Spring anniversary

Today's the 40th anniversary of the end of the Prague Spring. Last week I went poking around the Internet trying to find the video of Alexander Dubcek addressing the Czechoslovak people on TV after he was summoned away by the Kremlin. The way I was told "When we saw him crying, we knew it was over."

The tanks rolled in the night of August 20, 1968 -- and everyone's favorite story is about how the Russians were so confused they shot up the regal-looking National Museum at the top of Wenceslas Square, instead of the ugly modern Parliament building across the street. Of course the rest of the story was rather bleak.

At right, that's tank tread at the Museum of Communism in Prague. (And in case you're wondering, the museum is on no way nostalgic about their former overlords.)

Labels: prague

- posted by Amy @ 8/20/2008 07:58:00 AM

 
Video: Czech march against US radar facility



We're back in England now, but here's the quick video I shot a week ago in Prague.

Just before heading out to dinner, I caught a bit of CNN mentioning Condeleeza Rice was in Prague for the signing of the agreement that will allow the US to build a radar monitoring station in the Czech Republic. (It would guide defensive missiles launched from Poland or Lithuania if one of those sites are approved.)

As we were walking along Nerudova, up comes peaceful protesters with a police escort. The steplad was delighted like crazy to get a front-row view as the Czechs marched up to the castle. My crowd estimate (which by the way, have always been very close to official numbers when later released) was about 3,000 -- though the husband pegged it at a mere 1,000. (Harumpf.)

Their banners -- mainly anti-US, anti-nuke, anti-Condeleeza -- showed that they were an amazingly diverse group: greenpeace, veterans in uniform, communists and anarchists included.

Labels: politics, prague, video

- posted by Amy @ 7/15/2008 03:49:00 AM

 
Bringing back the 'Balkanization'

I'm watching CNN's footage of the mess in Belgrade. Maybe it was inevitable, but still very heartbreaking.

Reminds me of two things in particular from my time living in Europe.

First, there was an extremely annoying train ride in May 1992 I took solo from Athens to Prague. It was epic in the number of things that went wrong, (including a train conductor who pinned me against the window as he triend to stick his tongue down my throat,) but the problems leaving Belgrade had to do with another amorous gentleman. This guy was a Serb, a passenger sitting next to me. Early on, I slipped the fake wedding band on and feigned sleep. That didn't stop him, as he continually jabbed my shoulder to ask questions -- from would I have sex with him since my husband wasn't on the train to "When are the Americans going to come and help us?"

That was a question I certainly wasn't going to answer. The U.S. had just closed our embassy there, and I had been worried I wasn't going to be able to get a transit visa through Serbia (allowing me to get back to Prague in time for the Guns 'N Roses/Faith No More/Soundgarden concert.)

What I was thinking, but wouldn't say, was that 1) The Americans probably aren't coming, and 2) if they do, it will be to bomb your city. (Which eventually the U.S. did.)

His total ignorance of the situation was surprising.

The other thing that comes to mind is well, rather quaint in retrospect. This is a Prognosis story, the English-language newspaper I worked for in Czechoslovakia. I believe we sent three guys down to Slovenia/Croatia in June 1991 to report what turned out to be the very first battle of the decade-long (or ongoing, if you prefer) Balkan War. Prognosis was a monthly publication at the time (only about the fourth or fifth issue of the paper actually,) and we had looong meetings trying to decide on the wording of the banner headline. Basically it came down to "War in the Balkans" but the final debate was weather to go with or without the question mark. Because, we reasoned, the "war" could be over on Wednesday and we'd have a stale paper on the stands for three weeks.

And by the way, the defunct Prognosis now has a Facebook page.

And Google books will let you have a look inside Stacy Sullivan's 2004 book: "Be Not Afraid, for You Have Sons in America: How a Brooklyn Roofer Helped Lure the U.S. into the Kosovo War"

Labels: media, politics, prague

- posted by Amy @ 2/21/2008 02:11:00 PM

 
Congrats (books and art edition)


Congratulations to my friend Kip Bauersfeld, who has an art opening later this month in Prague.

And while I'm at it, here are a few more:

Congrats to Kevin Walsh, whose Forgotten New York book spent the holidays at the No. 1 spot at Brooklyn's best bookshop, Book Court.

And congrats to Todd Francis for finally getting an archive of his artwork online.

Labels: art, books, prague

- posted by Amy @ 1/13/2007 12:39:00 PM