Remembering 17 November 1973 - Εδώ Πολυτεχνείο! Εδώ Πολυτεχνείο!

Εδώ Πολυτεχνείο! Εδώ Πολυτεχνειο! Σας μιλά ο Ραδιοφωνικός Σταθμός των ελεύθερων αγωνιζόμενων φοιτητών, των ελεύθερων αγωνιζόμενων Ελλήνων... 

Today is the 17th of November and in Greece it marks the culmination of the 3 day anniversary commemoration of the events and the victims of the Polytechnic student uprising against the Junta in 1973.

We dedicate this post to all those involved who fought and resisted the dictatorship so that the future generations could enjoy the benefits of freedom and democracy in the land which invented them; to all those who resisted so that the future generations could enjoy the ideals they fought for, namely the right to

ΨΩΜΙ - ΠΑΙΔΕΙΑ - ΕΛΕΥΘΕΡΙΑ

 (Bread - Education - Freedom) 

ideals which seem as relevant today as they did then,  as Greece and her people struggle for economic survival in one of the most difficult periods seen in the last 30 years...

The great Nikos Xylouris' presence inside the Polytechnic in November of 1973 was catalytic, rallying the students and the people who gathered outside the gates with the depth and the power of his distinctive voice ...

His song Pote Tha Kanei Xasteria, was a call to battle, a rally to resistance against the Junta and the 7 year old dictatorship. 

This song, this call is as relevant today as it was then, because as Greeks we need to take stock and determine where we go from here. 

We have all played a role in allowing our society to get out of hand, not that we have all taken part in or benefitted from the corruption endemic in Greece today, but we have allowed it to happen... by not protesting, by not resisting, by giving in to all the shallowness around us we are almost as guilty as those who accepted the bribes or squandered public funds.

We need to take the 'opportunity' that this economic crisis has given us to re-examine the values our modern Greek society has acquired, focus on what is important in our lives and reset our objectives, rediscovering our values, ethical as well as economic, such as work and family and a host of other values intrinsic to Greece and important to Greeks...

If we do that, and do it fast, we have every hope of improving things dramatically and leaving something better for our children just as our parents did for us ... 

It is up to us!