Circus ÚSTR: That Was the Czech Dissent? Our Journey from Totalitarianism to Freedom
- Where: Václav Havel Library, Ostrovní 13, Prague 110 00
- When: November 14, 2024, 19:00 – 21:00
This year marks 35 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Velvet Revolution and the beginning of the disintegration of the Soviet-Russian empire. What role did the Czech dissent play in this? How did it handle the transformation of a communist totalitarian dictatorship into a democratic state with a confident civil society? What is the legacy of the Czech dissent? How, and for whom, might it be inspiring today? And, in the face of new forms of totalitarianism, what condition are Czech democracy, the West and the world in right now? Taking part in the debate will be one-time dissidents and post-1989 politicians Daniel Kroupa and Pavel Bratinka. Chaired by historian and philosopher Petr Hlaváček, director of the Department of Research and Education at the Institute for the Study of Totalitarian Regimes.
The event is part of a series of debates named Circus ÚSTR, with the title referencing the Czech acronym for the Institute for the Study of Totalitarian Regimes.