Ashamed

The Art Council of Novosibirsk finally approved the installation of the monument to Stalin in the city center. Of the 16 experts who attended the meeting, 11 people spoke out, against three. One abstained. The monument is going to erect on the territory of the regional branch of the Communist Party on the eve of May 9 this year. It will look like this:

"The bronze leaves the bronze,

But they lie, hiding, gypsum.

Let them be crippled until time

But in the ashes they keep the appearance.

They would, gypsum, humanity -

They will gain greatness again! "

(A. Galich)

"And bring the rope with you?" There is such an old joke. Our people will endure everything, forgive and carve themselves, hang themselves, and at the same time shoot. Historical mentality. Dosovetsky still.

And now with this monument. They said "we must" - we chose. They chose the evil evil of the proposed, but chose themselves. And the evil from this was no kind of. On the contrary, it felt its strength. And I won’t be surprised if tomorrow we are put on this beautiful wall, which we approved today. Where then will our votes be.

I am an invited expert of the artistic council. I can discuss, but not to vote. The thought flickered to get up and leave the hall. Forever. But it's simple. And what will be discussed here next? Will I be able to influence the decisions in the future? But today, the story of the monument to Stalin has become a litmus piece of paper for the art council, for each of his member separately: "Do I personally approve 5 million convicted for the wrong views, of which 1 million were shot, of which 130,000 only in ourselves, in a low -level Siberia." Those who voted - those answer know.

The artistic council is updated. The next meeting will be in another composition. And be that as it may, but during these two years something managed to defend. And the prevention of the fourth bridge in the city "City beginning", some ridiculous small architectural forms, the design of "funeral" memorable boards. Three times the artistic council rejected the installation of this bust. A number of priority offers are already ready for the new composition of the Council, so as not to step on the rake.

Yes, we are different, yes, I am leaving the discussion of the artistic merits of this monument in the political channel. Although, I would still say-in the universal. I consider it completely inappropriate to discuss the artistic merits and disadvantages of this bust, the technical details of its installation and improvement with the very immorality of the idea of this work.

Those 11 people who raised their hands voted for the monument to evil in Novosibirsk

Of course, the artistic council experienced relief from the solution of this protracted issue. Yes, we did not allow him to put a bust in a public, crowded place: on the Monument of Glory, at the House of Officers, on Sl. Sibiryakov-Guards. This is very good. You can be proud of this. But somehow, the well-known poem by Alexander Galich is recalled “Dedication to Pasternak”: “What are we proud of, scum, that he died in his bed!”

But all the same, those 11 people who raised their hands voted for the monument to evil in Novosibirsk. For Stalin. Someone consciously, someone "if not in the center", someone is just from fatigue. Yes, we are people, people. Weak. But he is not - he is evil. He does not sleep and continues to destroy our society.

Well, of course, these are emotions. They can be discarded. You can find a thousand excuses in yourself - well, after all, all the same, fascism won, a third of the population is respected, a third is indifferent, they all need to be understood too.

There was a feeling of some kind of cup of what happened. And even the press was not invited. Moreover, one of the journalists admitted to me that they heard that the issue of installation would be discussed, but the editorial office answered the phone’s phone call that there would be no meeting of the artistic council today. Maybe you got the wrong way? However, there really were almost no journalists at the meeting. I saw one. Plus, one camera that, it seems, was already clear.

And in me it is not at all hatred, as some opponents say. On the contrary, I, the old hippie, try to condemn everything into love, into positive. In general, I'm an optimist. But in me there is a simple human disgust for this person. So dad raised me, such messages gave me books that he read in childhood. Perhaps that is why it was not me who voted, but for some reason as to me.

The wall will fix. And it is almost built. Here she is, immediately behind him.

This will be the 22nd monument to Stalin in Novosibirsk, starting from the late 1930s. In any case, of those that I managed to find.

And it’s a pity that we open it for a great, popular holiday, Victory Day on May 9, and not to the birthday or death of a tyrant. First to ditch your army, repress its command staff, and then become a savior of the country is also our way.

Not the first time I am talking about a moratorium on the installation of new monuments. Especially the controversial personalities - formidable, Nikolai, Lenin, Ungernes, Stalin, Yeltsin and everything else. The personality of whatever person who is firmly divided by society into opposing forces cannot be put in public space - I regard this as a provocation to the civil war, which is prohibited by the Constitution of the Russian Federation.

We have nothing more to do? Yes, our youth knows nothing at all about the Great Patriotic War, or about its participants, we have no memory and about the fellow countrymen who remained in the fields of the First World War. The field for educational work is immense. The idols will not help here.

The decision and responsibility to the future lies with us, on each of us. Will we fall back in the days of state cannibalism? What are we now saying to our fathers, children? Will we and our beloved, educated, academic city are ashamed of this decision?

Konstantin Golodyaev - an employee of the Novosibirsk Museum, a member of the commission under the governor of the Novosibirsk region to perpetuate the memory of victims of political repression

The "Opinion" expressed in the heading of the point of view may not coincide with the position of the editorial office