On Freedom

For 3 seminars now I've been talking with my first year students in Political Science about courage, power of sacrifice and Freedom. First, we watched together a brilliant National Geographic documentary on the Berlin Wall. I think this short film is perfect for didactic purposes because:

* it is only 50 minutes long, thus we had time to stop and explain phrases like "The Death Strip", "Concentration Camp Berlin", or "Checkpoint Charlie";

* it has some great graphic representations which allow students to visualize the actual dangers of trying to escalate the deadly Wall;

* it tells three moving stories of brave East Germans who found ingenious but risky ways to get under, through or over the Wall;

* it touches briefly on the historical background, but includes memorable lines like "Ich bin ein Berliner" (JFK) or "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall" (Ronald Reagan);

* it presents the teacher with the ideal opportunity to discuss an issue like Freedom.

What is more, this documentary provided me with the chance to tackle the problem of the Romanian Revolution which took place in 1989, one year before my students were born.. It was extremely interesting for me to listen to what Freedom meant to them, since they haven't lived in the socialist system which deprived us of this fundamental right. Almost all of them said that Freedom meant "everything" to them and that they had a hard time imagining how it must have "felt" to be a teenager in Eastern Europe 20 years ago, without jeans or Western music, with restricted electricity and hot water, with freedom of speech direly infringed etc. That is why, my students concluded, it is important to commemorate these events, to talk about them, to try to learn what happened so that history will not repeat itself.

We took the discussion further, and I asked them what walls still have to be "torn down". Here their answers were smart and, I confess, deeper than I'd expected. They said that walls of racism, intolerance, xenophobia, stereotyping, and old-fashioned mentalities are still standing. And the mere fact that they acknowledged the existence of these walls gives me hope that they'll search and find ways to destroy them..

Thanks to Larry Ferlazzo for his great post on the walls that separate us and to Sean Banville for his lesson plan on Freedom and the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Turning off the lights

Celebrating Earth Hour here. I guess the phrase "We should do this more often" applies :)

Respect '89

Sustin

Dupa succesul de anul trecut al actiunii "Mos Craciun vine cu motocicleta", haideti sa sustinem ONG-ul Timisoara Bikers si anul acesta, in efortul lor caritabil! Astfel, SAMBATA, 20 Decembrie, de la 13.30, la Filarmonica Banatul din Timisoara, in jur de 200 de copii din 3 centre de plasament din Timis (Centrul nr 1 din Timisoara, Centrele din Recas si Gavojdia) vor participa la o serbare de Craciun. Micii artisti vor primi apoi cadouri si se vor bucura, speram, de sarbatori mai fericite..

Istoria se repeta la Muzeul Taranului Roman Petition

Istoria se repeta la Muzeul Taranului Roman Petition

Incredibil!!!

Duck Race

5000 ducks racing on the Bega River. Each of them had an 'adoptive' parent who donated 5 lei for the rehabilitation of this river crossing our city.

It was a big event, the first of its kind in Timisoara, so I'm proud to have been part of the organizing team. At the end of the day, we raised money, and had fun (despite the cold, pouring rain)! Moreover, people gathered on the banks of the river and felt something was, at last, going to be done in order to change the lousy state it's been in for decades. Being a volunteer really fills my life with interesting experiences, and my heart with joy.