TWO CENTENARIES
TONY LEON: Looking backwards to go forward is hardly the way to make progress
Fear of being on the wrong side of history shows up again at celebrations around Helen Suzman’s centenary, writes Tony Leon
One of the many features of SA today is a fascination with looking in the rear-view mirror, almost to the exclusion of the road ahead. But often, the view backwards is distorted. Tuesday November 7 provided seminal centenary events from opposite ends of the ideological spectrum — the date of both the Bolshevik Revolution and the birth of liberal politician Helen Suzman. Undoubtedly, the Russian Revolution had the greatest impact on world events — and a very distinct influence on SA. And while the Soviet Union is buried in the very "dustbin of history" revolutionary Leon Trotsky assigned to his movement’s enemies, its following wind still propels much of our current debate. While there are calls to ban the old South African flag following its appearance – apparently much of it fake news – at the recent Black Monday protests against farm murders, there is no suggestion that the hammer and sickle of Soviet communism should not be displayed. But in sheer terms of mass murder, human mise...
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