Around the world, November 17 is known as International Students' Day, but Slovakia turned the day into a public holiday in 2001. It's now celebrated as the Day of the Fight for Freedom and Democracy.
At the beginning of November 1989, members of the Public Security - the name of the police under the socialist regime - beat students who were marching in support of basic human rights in Prague. This caused public outrage, and more and more people joined the students in demonstrating against the socialist regime, eventually resulting in its fall. The people of Czechoslovakia, as well as of other central and eastern European nations, demanded democracy, freedom and the protection of human rights and freedom of religion in 1989.
We have tried to explore the legacy of November 17 from the perspective of personal stories. Does the young generation recognise the achievements of the Velvet Revolution? How does a grandma explain the change to her grand- daughter? And did you know that the English language is one of the legacies of this historical milestone too? Just listen.
Legacy of November 1989
Máte problém s prehrávaním? Nahláste nám chybu v prehrávači.
