Events 2009
The Cold War, from an American Perspective
When: Wednesday, November 4, 5.30 p.m.
Where: American Center, Tržiště 13, Prague 1 - Malá Strana
Benjamin Frommer, U.S. Fulbright scholar at the Institute of Contemporary History and professor of history at Northwestern University, will present a lecture entitled “The Cold War: An American Perspective 20 Years after 1989" as we celebrate the opening of the unique exhibition On the Front of the Cold War - Czechoslovakia 1948 – 1956 organized in cooperation with the Institute for the Study of Totalitarian Regimes.
In particular, Professor Frommer will examine the role of President Ronald Reagan in the Cold War and its demise. He will also discuss the implications on historical study, US politics, and US-European and Czech-American relations.
Admission is free of charge.
The exhibition opening will be in Czech and the lecture in English.
On the Cold War Front - Czechoslovakia 1948 – 1956
The unique exhibition, featuring the stories of agent-walkers (couriers) who transported important information and materials across the just risen Iron Curtain will be open two weeks before the 20. Anniversary of November 17. 1989.
The exhibition “On the Cold War Front” is dedicated to the thousands of unknown fellow citizens who, after February 1948, decided to actively fight from abroad against the Communist power in Czechoslovakia. Dramatic battles of the Cold War took place on the border between East and West in the years 1948-1956. The secret operations of exile intelligence groups have practically been forgotten by now. Today we search for their significance both for the development of our country and for the traditions of the struggle for freedom and democracy.
The entirely bi-lingual English-Czech exhibition covers the following main themes:
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the inception, development and structure of foreign intelligence resistance and its organizers, goals and results;
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the various ways in which couriers (or “agent-walkers”) crossed the borders and the technical and operative measures taken against them;
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personalities from among the couriers and the technical equipment they used;
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concrete cases of persecution of Czechoslovak citizens who contributed to the couriers’ activities;
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the security apparatus structures of the State Security Service (Státní bezpečnost – StB), the National Security Corps (Sbor národní bezpečnosti – SNB) and the Border Guard Service (Pohraniční stráž – PS) which the foreign resistance had to face;
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period propaganda and reactions on the part of the regime.
The exhibition will be opened from November 4th to November 11 2009,
Monday to Thursday, 1.00 pm – 4.00 pm
Exhibition opening on November 4th, 2009 at 5.30 pm. After the opening ceremony, Benjamin Frommer, U.S. Fulbright scholar at the Institute of Contemporary History and professor of history at Northwestern University, will present a lecture entitled “The Cold War: An American Perspective 20 Years after 1989".
More information about the exhibition you can find at the Institute for the Study of Totalitarian Regimes web page.
