(RE)CONSTRUCTION

ongoing

Imagine that you have to start all over. What choices do you make while rebuilding a democratic society? What is valuable to keep and what should we never allow to happen (again)? 1945 marked the end of a horrific period, but also the beginning of the reconstruction. After the horror of the war, it was time to design a future. Already during war, agreements were made about new borders, new collaborations and the construction of Europe. The project RECONSTRUCT tells the oral histories of post-war Europe in all its diversity, from different perspectives. We zoom in on this specific period of time, as it is the moment when the foundation of a new society and collaboration was laid. By remembering why and how this was done, we raise awareness for the underlying EU values that are still at the core of Europe today, such as equality, democracy, freedom, rule of law, human rights. (RE)CONSTRUCT is part of the Iron Curtain Project, our multimedia project that investigates the state of Europe in the context of the divided past in East and West. In (RE)CONSTRUCT too, the divided history of Europe will be taken into account. In the West, the post-war period was a starting point of transitioning to democracy after occupation. In the East, in the post-war period new totalitarian regimes came into place. We reflect on these differences: what happens when power falls into the wrong hands? And what parallels in solutions can be found when rebuilding the society? Nowadays, the EU democratic system is again under pressure; being challenged by radical movements, polarization and populists questioning fundamental values of diversity, democracy and political freedom. It’s almost as if we have forgotten the past. The project, with a special focus on young people (age 15-30) uses two core forms to involve participants: 1 Traveling journalistic-theatrical performance. 2 Interactive workshops in which the target group will need to take a role/perspective in the (re)development of a society