If anyone is moved by that memorial, good, you should be. I can’t walk down a street without seeing Jewish connections or reminders. This was once one of the great centers of Jewish life in Europe and it is the part of the local history that I find the most moving. However, it is impossible for me not to be fair. After many years of living and visiting here I have yet to hear the collective voice and attitude of all Hungarians on any subject. Generalizations are never very productive when dealing with complex subjects. Because of the generalization I would have to disagree with some of what you said, but I do know where it comes from and I am sympathetic to that as well.
I love the strength and integrity and simplicity in the memorial you refer to. I was there when it first began to be formed and I respect a society that maintains it and keeps it alive. No vandalism from the opposition. You said, “for now” Orban has allowed it to remain. “For now,” would be going on 10 years so far; so be fair the government has condoned it through their silence on the subject. You should think about what that might mean.
One question does remain, were any Hungarian citizens the victims of the actions of their government or the resulting Nazi occupation in WWII? And if the answer is YES, should society be afraid to make the statement? You do know that the Germans did invade and forced the leadership out of Hungary, and that the monument is for what happened after that? This is the history that the House of Terror Museum documents very well. So, they do face it, have documented it and do admit it.
The families of one synagogue that I am familiar with gave their children to Christians to raise as their own before the Holocaust took them. Are those families and those children’s victims? If the Christian families got caught and punished, were they victims, tens of thousands of Hungarian Christinas were sent by Germany to forced labor camps towards the end of the war … victims? Do you believe that those that did not support the fascist Hungarian government and then the Nazi occupation government were not victimized? What about the Righteous among Nations, about 900 came from Hungary, victims? If the US had a president that you disagreed with that did terrible things, would it be possible for you to be a victim of that? Can Hungarians acknowledge that a lot of peopel and a lot of groups were victimized during the war?
The (very, very ugly) monument is seen as an inaccurate generalization because it only says “1944 In Memory of the Victims,” nothing else and no other explanation. This for many makes it as inaccurate a generalization as your generalization above. I don’t disagree but still, citizens of Hungary, the same ones that you generalized about and said were trying to blame others, built the counter memorial and the government through their decade of silence has condoned what those people did.
Looking towards the positive, today, Hungary is tied with Italy as the safest and most prosperous country in Europe for Jewish to live in. So, something is going correctly. I live across the street from an orthodox synagogue, and it is a reminder that the majority of the people here have come to proper terms with past sins. Walk down the street, the Stolpersteine remains undisturbed, the boundaries of the ghetto are set into the walkways so you cannot enter without a reminder. These are all the reminders condoned by the government and the people of Hungary.
This country is messed up as much as any country, just in different ways. Its been interesting sitting on the outside lookng in at how they deal with things.
