Fascism rears its ugly head again

In the heart of Europe, the beast of fascism rears its ugly head, the Roma fear for their lives

With the horrors of Kristallnacht fresh on the minds of many, only days after the seventieth anniversary of the violent night that ushered in the Holocaust, it is evident that in the heart of Europe the beast of fascism is awake, rearing its ugly head again, causing some to be afraid for their lives.

Last year on the day of the Kristallnacht pogrom anniversary, some 400 Neo-Nazis were blocked from marching in Prague's Jewish Quarter by police and three thousand [1] anti-fascist activists who gathered in front of a Prague synagogue dedicated to the memory of some 77,000 Jewish victims of the Holocaust from the former Czechoslovakia.

This November, the commemoration on the anniversary of the Night of Broken Glass in Prague took place without any calamities. But the epicenter of recent neo-Nazi activity has shifted 70 miles northwest of Prague to the town of Litvinov where on October 18 and November 17 of this year, right-wing extremists staged large-scale, violent demonstrations, targeting the Roma minority. The Roma, like the Jews, had been targeted, deported and nearly exterminated in a genocide perpetrated by the Nazis during World War II. [2]

Today, all across Europe [3] and the U.S. [4] right-wing extremism and hate crime is on the rise.

On November 17, stones, firecrackers, bottle rockets, gas bombs, pepper spray and people's screams filled the air of Litvinov. A battle ensued between a thousand police in riot gear and seven hundred to fifteen hundred (depends on the source) right-wing extremists, waving Nazi flags and wearing Nazi arm-bands and colors. They shouted racist slogans and tried to incite the Roma to violence. The locals joined in, clapping, cheering and cursing the Roma. [5]. This was named the "toughest clash of police and far-rightists since 2000" in the Czech Republic. [6]

Where were the anti-facist and human activists last Monday? Only a handful of allies showed up to peacefully protest with the Litvinov Roma, though Green Peace [7] and Amnesty International [8] issued statements condemning the recent wave of extremist actions targeting the Roma.

In the Czech society [9], and in Europe as a whole [10], racism runs deep. So deep that Czech Roma community members and leaders have voiced fear that the demonstrations, which have so far been reigned in by the police who bore the brunt of the violence carried out by the extremists, could spill over and cause "mass killings of innocent people" in the minority communities. [11]

And the instigator, the Workers' Party, which the Czech prime minister Mirek Topolanek agrees should be dismantled [12], has promised to return to Litvinov with a vengeance, very possibly before the end of November. [13]

Though last year, the European Union's Parliament adopted a new resolution on combating the rise of extremism in Europe, [14], Roma rights activists have criticized the Czech government as well as the European Union [15] for not condemning extremists' actions [16] and for not doing enough to address the needs of the Roma communities across the continent.

Study after study has shown that the approximately 9 million Roma living in the 27 countries of the European Union suffer widespread poverty, social exclusion, poor health, low educational levels and high unemployment. [17] The Czech Republic, it must be noted, is the only one of all the EU states that has yet to implement an anti-discrimination law. Such law is required by an EU directive. However, last May, President Václav Klaus vetoed the government-proposed anti-discrimination bill, with the words: "I consider the proposed bill useless, counterproductive and low-quality." [18]. There has been no follow-up on the bill since other than the European Commission threatening to file a lawsuit or impose a high fine on the Czech government for failing to adopt anti-discrimination legislation. [19]

Numbers of watchdogs and prominent political figures warn that the situation is only bound to get worse as the recession deepens and unemployment skyrockets. [20, 21] Some have even speculated that "Eastern Europe's slavish appropriation of neoliberalism is leading to a big increase in extreme rightwing crime." [22].

What is needed, says Cyril Koky, member of the government council for Romany affairs, is "for the Roma to be able to work." [23]

"The government should, for instance, institute tax incentives for businesses willing to hire so-called problematic citizens (as the Roma are often referred to)." Koky went on to say that he believes affirmative action laws would be effective in combatting inequality. Though the "regional governments are the ones who bare the main responsibility for improving the situations in the ghettos," Koky said, "the state government body should work on changing the laws to make it more difficult for extremists to assemble." [24]

The Council of the Regional Roma Representatives (GRRP), however, urges that the situation is so dire that lofty ideas about what the Czech Republic should do to better the situation of the Roma regarding education, housing, and employment have become secondary. "It is of utmost importance now," they say in their statement regarding the November 17 extremist provocation, "that the Czech state prevent the massacring of Roma children, women and men."[25]

"For the Roma population, the 17th of November marked the collapse of all human rights and civil liberties that are possible in a civilized society and guaranteed to all human beings. In the Czech Republic, anti-Roma sentiment has turned into a life threat." [26]

FOOTNOTES:

1. http://romove.radio.cz/en/article/21674 - "Neo-Nazis fail to march through Prague's Jewish Quarter,: Czech Radio, November 12, 2007

2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holocaust - "Holocaust," Wikipedia

3. http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/media/disc/2007/alert/268/index.htm - "New Report Finds Hate Crimes on the Rise in Many Parts of Europe," Human Rights First, June 6, 2007

4. http://www.splcenter.org/intel/intelreport/article.jsp?aid=762 - "The Year in Hate," Southern Poverty Law Center, Spring 2007

5. http://www.romea.cz/index.php?id=detail&detail=2007_5217 - "Lidé neonacistům tleskali. A bude hůř, soudí odborník na extremismus," iDNES.cz, November 18, 2008

6. http://www.romea.cz/english/index.php?id=detail&detail=2007_1100 - "CzechRep sees toughest clash of police, far-rightists since 2000," Romea.cz, November 17, 2008

7. http://www.romarights.net/content/czechs-greens-want-govt-discuss-extremists-actions - "Czechs Greens want govt to discuss extremists' actions," Roma Rights Network, October 30, 2008

8. http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/news/czech-anti-roma-demonstrators-clash-with-police20081119
- "CZECH ANTI-ROMA DEMONSTRATORS CLASH WITH POLICE," Amnesty International, November 19, 2008

9. http://www.romea.cz/english/index.php?id=detail&detail=2007_1096 - "Czech Romanies' position on society margins not changing much," Romea.cz, November 10, 2008

10. http://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?catId=518&langId=en - "The European Union and Roma," European Commission.

11. http://www.romea.cz/english/index.php?id=detail&detail=2007_1097 - "Czech Republic faces great civic disturbances-Romany activist ," Romea.cz, November 19, 2008

12. http://aktualne.centrum.cz/czechnews/clanek.phtml?id=622501 - "PM Topolánek to back up ban of Workers' Party," Aktualne.cz, November 19, 2008

13. "Neonaciste hrozi dalsimi akcemi," Pravo newspaper, Zpravodajstvi section, page 5, November 20, 2008

14. http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?Type=TA&Reference=P6-TA-2007-0623&language=EN - "European Parliament resolution of 13 December 2007 on combating the rise of extremism in Europe," European Parliament, December 13, 2007

15. http://www.romea.cz/english/index.php?id=detail&detail=2007_1060 - "EU criticized at first European Roma summit," Romea.cz, September 17, 2008

16. http://www.romea.cz/english/index.php?id=detail&detail=2007_1097 - "Czech Republic faces great civic disturbances-Romany activist," Romea.cz, November 19, 2008

17. http://ec.europa.eu/employment_social/fundamental_rights/policy/aneval/stureps_en.htm - "Studies and reports on discrimination-related issues," European Commission, July 2008

18. http://www.praguepost.com/articles/2008/05/28/klaus-vetoes-crucial-anti-discrimination-bill.php - "Klaus vetoes crucial anti-discrimination bill," The Prague Post Online, May 28, 2008

19. http://www.ceskenoviny.cz/news/index_view.php?id=339920 - "Debate on Czech anti-discrimination law put off," Ceske noviny, October 21, 2008

20. http://uk.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUKL128784320080901 - "Recession could spark rise in crime and extremism," Reuters UK, September 1, 2008

21. "Clen vladni rady Koky: Hrozi obcanske nepokoje," Pravo newspaper, Zpravodajstvi section, page 5, November 20, 2008

22. http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2007/may/07/graveerrors - "Grave errors," Guardian UK, May 7, 2007

23. "Utoku na Romy bude pribyvat," iDnes newspaper, page A5, November 20, 2008

24. ibid

25. http://www.romea.cz/index.php?id=detail&detail=2007_5223 - "GRRP: Český stát musí zabránil masakrování romských dětí, žen a mužů," Romea.cz, November 19, 2008

26. ibid

Finally, episode 9 is here! It's an interview with Jan Vaculík, owner and publisher of the Texas-based Czech language newspaper Hospodář, which was founded in 1890 in Omaha, Nebraska. Mr. Vaculík, who has been publishing Hospodár for over thirty years, prides himself on the independent nature of the newspaper. His goal, as he says in the interview, is to provide education, enlightenment, and a diversity of views. More information about Hospodář can be found at this link. If you would like to hear an English version of this interview, let me know and I will create one just for you!

***

Konečně je tu díl 9, rozhovor s Janem Vaculíkem, majitelem a vydavatelem novin Hospodář. Jsou to noviny v čestině, nyní vydávané v Texasu, ale původně založeny roku 1890 v Omaze, Nebrasce. Pan Vaculík, který noviny vydává již přes třicet let, je hrdý na nezávislý charakter svých novin. Jeho cíl, jak ostatně říká v rozhovoru, je poskytnout čtenářum jak osvětu a moznost se naučit něco nového, tak různorodost nazorů. Více informací o Hospodáři najdete zde. Rozhovor jsme podnikli jen v čestine, tak kdyby si někdo z vás přál slyšet anglickou verzi, dejte vědět a provedu to jen pro Vás!

My apologies for the long break between episodes. I will be working on a couple of new episodes soon, so please stay tuned!

Also, the previously recorded episodes have been moved to a new server. I plan to update the links very soon!

Thank you for your patience and support.

If you are a Czech (or Slovak) living in America and would like to be interviewed for a future episode, please email me at czechsinamerica[at]hotmaildotcom. I would love to hear from you!

Tereza, the host of Czechs in America podcast, was interviewed by Victor Cajiao for his podcast, Immigration Tales, about her immigration experience. You can listen to the interview here. Don't forget to give your feedback!

***

S Terezou nahrál rozhovor o její zkušenosti s emigrací Victor Cajiao na svém podcastu zvaném Immigration Tales. Rozhovor si můžete poslechnout zde. Nezapomeňte zanechat připomínky!

This episode features an interview with Katya Kohoutová Heller, who was born to an American mother and Czech father and raised in Czechoslovakia. She was educated as an interpreter and translator at Charles University in Prague. In late 1989 and 1990 she worked as an interpreter and press spokesperson for the Civic Forum. Since 1986 she has lived mostly in the United States and has been affiliated with numerous artists, arts organizations and commercial galleries as a special projects manager, dealer and curator. She served as the interpreter and representative for Stanislav Libenský and Jaroslava Brychtová until Professor Libenský’s death in February 2002. Currently she is affiliated with Heller Gallery, an art gallery in New York City.

Heller has lectured on Czech glass sculpture at the Sydney College of the Arts, the Seattle Art Museum, Grounds for Sculpture, the Pilchuck Glass School and the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, WA. She is presently a member of the Board of Directors of UrbanGlass, a non-profit arts organization in Brooklyn, New York and also serves as the Chairperson of the Advisory Board of the Czech Center - New York.

***

V tomto dílu uslyšíte rozhovor s Káťou Kohoutovou Heller, která vyrůstala s americkou maminkou a českým tatínkem v Československu. Vystudovala překládání a tlumočení na Karlově univerzitě v Praze. V roce 1989 a 1990 pracovala jako tlumočnice a tisková mluvčí pro Občanské forum. Od roku 1986 žije převážně ve Spojených státech a věnuje se práci v oboru výtvarného umění jako vedoucí speciálních projektů, prodejce umění a kurátor. Působila jako tlumočnice a zastupitelka Stanislava Libenského a Jaroslavy Brychtové až do úmrtí profesora Libenského v únoru 2002. V současné době pracuje v Heller Gallery v New Yorku.

Káťa Kohoutová Heller přednášela na téma české sklo v Sydney College of the Arts, Seattle Art Museu, Grounds for Sculpture, the Pilchuck Glass School a Museu skla v Tacomě ve state Washington. Je členkou správní rady neziskové organizace UrbanGlass v Brooklynu. Také je předsednicí dozorčí rady Českého centra v New Yorku.

Here is the Czech language version of my interview with John Velehradsky. See previous post for details about this interview.

***

Zde je česká verze rozhovoru s Johnem Velehradským. Detajly o tomto rozhovoru najdete v minulém "postingu."

For the latest episode, episode 6, of Czechs in America I interviewed John Velehradsky, president of the Czech Society of Oregon. John is a first generation American, born to parents who immigrated to the United States from Bohemia, or what is now known as the Czech Republic, in the early 1900's. John, an engineer by trade, has been doing extensive research on his family and his Czech heritage, and has been able to trace his ancestors back thirteen generations.

In this interview, John talks about his Czech heritage and about the Czech Society or Oregon.

A Czech version of this interview will be available shortly.

***

V novém, tedy šestém dílu podcastu Češi v Americe uslyšíte rozhovor s Johnem Velehradským, presidentem združení Čechů v Oregonu, neboli Czech Society of Oregon. Johnovi rodiče byli Češi, jež emigrovali do Spojených států na počátku dvacátého století. John, který je povoláním inženýrem, se už nějakou dobu věnuje svému zájmu o českou kulturu a zabývá se taktéž geneologií své rodiny. Vyhledal informaci o svých předcích až třináct generací nazpět.

V našem rozhovoru John hovoří o svém původu a rodině i o združení Čechů v Oregonu.

Česká verze rozhovoru se chystá.

The latest episode, dated September 2006, is sort of a sound collage chronicling my experiments with sound growing up and comprising short segments taken from recordings from the various stages of my life.

In order for all my episodes to get to those who subscribe to this podcast, I think I need to post each episode separately. This posting features the Czech version of the episode in English which describes my interest in sound recordings and my reason for starting this podcast.

I have just completed two new episodes of the Czechs in America podcast. Here is a bit about the content:

One episode describes my interest in sound recordings, beginning in grade school and continuing through today. In the same episode, I also discuss my reason for starting this podcast. The English version will be seperate from the Czech version.

The other new episode chronicles my experiments with sound growing up, and comprises short segments taken from recordings from the various stages of my life.

Part I, in Czech and a little more than three minutes long, highlights the earliest stage of my recording days. I selected two excerpts from Radio Praha Hřebenka, the pretend radio broadcast my sister and I created. I must have been about ten or eleven then. The first of the two tongue-in-cheek excerpts is meant to demonstrate how to have "natural fun." The second features an interview with an imaginary toy factory worker.

Part II, also in Czech, features an excerpt from my recording of second-graders during the time I was a chaperone for an afterschool club for young "pioneers", a communist youth-type organization. This recording is more than twenty-years-old. The children are asked what they'd like to be when they grow up. The most memorable responses are: "dump truck driver", "Indian", and "VB", short for veřejná bezpečnost, the communist term for a police officer.

Part III is a sound collage from my high school days in English, mocking the idea of working hard and making the big bucks in this "land of opportunity" where money grows on trees.

Part IV is more obscure than the others. It pokes fun at some of the awful professors I had in college. One can be heard discussing what he'll be having for breakfast. I juxtaposed this critique of my professors with the sounds of mysterious footsteps and gentle piano music. College was a time of extremes for me. Ecstatic highs (not drug-induced, mind you) and terrible lows as I learned a ton about myself and the world around me, living away from my family for the first time and not too long after immigrating to the U.S. The gentler portion of this segment shows the other side of my life at the time. The more intimate side, the side longing for affirmation and a soft place to fall.

The stars of Part V are some of the high school students I taught a couple of years back. They are all English language learners between fourteen and sixteen years of age. As you may or may not know, I am a teacher, whose passion is working with immigrants, whether they are adults or teens. Currently, I work as a high school ESL teacher.

Part VI features the voice of one of my favorite people, my one-year-old son Jonah.

***

Zrovna jsem dokončila dva nové díly podcastu Česi v Americe. Popíšu vám teď jejich obsah:

V jednom z dílů vyprávím o své vášni pro nahráváni zvukových záznamů, které se věnuji už od útlého věku. Ve stejném dílu také pohovořím o tom, proč jsem se vlastně rozhodla tento podcast založit. Českou i anglickou verzi si budete moci poslechnout zvlášť.

Další nový díl vás provede sbírkou nahrávek, které reprezentují několik částí mého života.

První část je v čestině a je vybraná z úplně prvotní kategorie nahrávek. Tehdy jsem se sestrou na kazetu natáčela pořady do naší dětské domácí rozhlasové stanice Radio Praha Hřebenka. Bylo mi tehdy asi deset nebo jedenáct. Nejdřív uslyšíte Chvilku smíchu nazvanou To jsi Ty a pak rozhovor s pracovnicí v továrně na hračky.

Druhá část, také v čestině, se skládá z úryvků nahrávky jiskřiček v druhé třídě, kterých jsme se s kamarádkou, jakožto vychovatelky, zeptalz, čím by chtěli být, až vyrostou. Tahle anketa se odehrála před více než dvaceti lety.

Třetí část je zvuková koláž ze střední skoly v angličtině. Posmívám se v ní pojmu, že v Americe si každý muže vydělat hordy peněz, jen když pěkně zamaká. Najdou se tu v té užasné zemi přece i ulice penězi vydlážděné.

Čtvrtá část je víc abstraktní. Dělám si v ní legraci z toho, jak strašní byli někteří z mých profesorů na vejšce. Jeden z nich je tu nahraný, jak nám popisuje, co si dává k snídani. Jako protiklad jsem k tomu připojila zvuk tajemných kroků a tichou hudbu na klavír. Vysoká škola pro mě byla dobou extrémů - úžasná extáze (ne ovšem drogami zpusobená, abyste si nemysleli) a hrozný citový propasti. Možná proto, že jsem poznávala svět a sama sebe, poprvé daleko a dlouhodobě od rodiny a ne tak dlouho po emigraci do Ameriky. Ta jemnější část tohoto úryvku vyjadřuje spíš vnitřní stránku mého života v té době. Tu intimnějsí stránku, která touží po pocitu něhy.

V páté části uslyšíte středoškoláky, které jsem před pár lety učila. Všichni jsou emigranti. Možná už tušíte, že jsem učitelka a miluju práci s emigranty, jak s dospělýma, tak s mládeží. V současné době učím angličtinu pro cizince na střední škole v Americe.

V šesté části se vám představí jeden můj oblíbenec, můj syn Jonáš, kteremu je teď jeden rok.

What listeners are saying/Co říkají posluchači:

(So far, I've gotten response from listeners in the Czech Republic, Canada and the U.S. - East Coast as well as the West Coast)
(Zatím se mi ozvali posluchači z České republiky, Kanady a Spojených států - východního i západního pobřeží)

"zajimavý rozhovor" - Interesting interview

"zaujalo mě to" - It caught my interest

"What a neat idea!" - Hezký nápad!

"I really like your podcast. It's a great concept and interesting." - Velice se mi líbí tvůj podcast. Je to vynikající koncept a podcast je zajimavý.

"That's fucking awesome... What a cool project." - To je ohromný... Super projekt.

"It's really good." - Je to velmi dobré.

"Good job and very interesting interviews thus far." - Výtečná práce a zatím velmi zajimavé rozhovory.

"Although your podcasts are not lessons, they are useful as learning aids because they are bilingual. I'm not advanced enough to understand most of the Czech, but the english version helps me pick out words I do know." - I když tvé podcasty nejsou lekce, jsou užitečné jako učební pomůcky, protože jsou dvojjazyčné. Nejsem tak pokročilá, abych rozuměla většině slov v tvém programu, ale anglická verze mi pomáhá se slovy, které neznám.

"I can't wait to see what your podcast has in store. Keep up the great work." - Nemůžu se dočkat, co dalšího přinese tvůj podcast. Jen tak dál.

A new episode of Czechs in America is here! The episode spotlights Jiri Fisher, an actor and producer for Voice of America. You can listen to the podcast by clicking here.

JIRI FISHER immigrated to the United States in 1980 after having spent twelve years as an actor in Czech theaters, television, radio, and films. In the U.S. he landed a principal role in the NBC soap opera, "Another World" and also played on CBS' "As the World Turns." On stage, among many other roles, he performed in the off-Broadway production of John Foster's play "Ceremony in Bohemia." This performance, as we learn in the interview, lead to his career as director and international broadcaster for Voice of America, the official international broadcasting service of the United States federal government. There he has received awards for excellence in programming. Currently, he is the Executive Producer for the West and South Asian division of Voice of America.

Nový díl podcastu Češi v Americe je tu! Představí se vám v něm herec a producent vysílání Hlasu Ameriky Jiří Fisher. Tento podcast si můžete poslechnout zde.

Jiří Fišer emigroval do Spojených států v roce 1980 po té, co dvanáct let jako herec působil v ceských divadlech, televizi, rozhlasu a filmu. V Americe dostal hlavní roli ve slavné telenovele "Another World" (Jiný svět) a hrál i v seriálu "As the World Turns" (Jak se země točí). Na jevišti si mimo jiné zahrál v "off-Broadway" hře dramatika Johna Fostera "Oslava v Čechách." Tato role, jak se dozvíme v rozhovoru, vedla k dlouhodobé kariéře v Hlasu Ameriky což je mezinárodní rozhlas a televize vlády Spoj. států. Jiří Fišer tam nyní pusobí jakožto šéf režisér vysílání pro Střední východ a byl již za kvalitu vysílání svého programu mnohokrát oceněn.