Den hanby i vzdoru
The Day of Shame but also Defiance

Summary/Abstract: The collective volume "Den hanby 1969: 21. srpen 1969 v ulicích českých a moravských měst" [Day of Shame 1969: 21 August 1969 in the Streets of Czech and Moravian Towns] written by a team of authors led by Daniel Povolný depicts the mass protests of Czech citizens against the Soviet occupation of August 1968 and the quashing of the Prague Spring on its first anniversary. The reviewer compares this work with previous publications on the subject and notes that, in terms of interpretation, the conclusions do not differ in any significant way. However, thanks to the current greater availability of archival materials, it provides a more comprehensive picture of the events of the time. For example, it captures demonstrations and their suppression outside the main centres of protest, which is enhanced by the rich photographic material. Although the authors do not pay much attention to the general political context, making some parts of the volume unbalanced, it systematically and clearly documents the last and greatest uprising of the Czech public against the occupation and the upcoming normalization. The reviewer concludes by noting that, given the brutality of the repression, it was certainly a day of shame, as the title states, but it also deserves to be remembered as a day of civil defiance.

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