05.11.2024 / News
How do we learn from the past to better understand the present? The “Țara Bunicilor” (Grandparents’ Land) workshop gave children and young people the opportunity to explore recent history through interactive experiences and role-playing games. Starting with the rigged elections of 1946 and continuing with experiments on collectivization and anti-communist resistance, participants discovered, through the eyes of those who suffered, what life under the totalitarian regime was like. The debates ended with a discussion on fundamental rights and freedoms, and an analysis of democratic values.
This journey through collective memory took place in several locations across the country – Făgăraș, Mândra, Sibiu, Sâmbăta de Sus and Pitești – each with its own story. Through a combination of workshops, testimonies and thinking exercises, young people experienced, for a few moments, fragments of a reality that was almost unknown to them.
“Grandparents’ Land is more than an educational project. It is an interdisciplinary experiment that creates a space for dialogue and reflection. It is also a challenge to approach history in new ways, with a focus on multimedia technology, but also on role-playing and play, experiments, and dialogue. It has been an exciting journey into the past, giving children and young people the opportunity to better understand the present and think about the future. Because collective memory is not just about knowing what happened, but also about understanding why it matters.” – says Ioana Hașu-Georgiev, coordinator and initiator of the workshops.
The workshops were part of the Share Location: The Făgăraș Resistance project, which also included a documentary-theater performance dedicated to women in the anti-communist resistance.
Here is a brief story of the Summer 2024 workshops and some messages about the impact they had on participants.
📍 Pilot workshops at the “Andreian” School in Sibiu and Mândra Secondary School
The workshop concept was tested and fine-tuned in meetings with pupils at the “Andreian” School in Sibiu and Mândra Secondary School in Brașov County, respectively. Feedback from the children and teachers was incorporated into the final form of the workshop.
📍 Mândra, Brașov County – between collectibles and stories
In the village of Mândra, the workshop was hosted as part of the #Garaj30 exhibition, a collection of objects and stories about communism. 17 children between the ages of 7 and 14 explored the past through role-play and discussion, discovering how everyday life was affected by the totalitarian regime. A touching moment was when the children wrote messages to their grandparents or people who lived through those times, expressing their thoughts and curiosity about the past.
📍 History and Tradition Camp, Sâmbăta de Sus – in the shoes of those who resisted
In Sâmbăta de Sus, two workshops brought together 30 high school and university students from all over the country. They had the opportunity to visit the exhibition dedicated to the women of the anti-communist resistance in the Dungeon Tower of Făgăraș Citadel and to take part in interactive exercises where they were put in situations similar to those experienced by the people of that period. One of the most intense moments was the role-play about collectivization, where young people felt, even for a few minutes, what it means to lose something important against your will.
📍 Pitești Memorial – facing the hardest questions
At the Pitești Memorial Museum, where some of the harshest forms of communist repression took place, two groups of high school students participated in workshops about the mechanisms of repression and their impact on people. Through guided role-plays and a board game created together with young people, participants experienced moral dilemmas and understood what it meant to be a political prisoner or a collaborator with the regime. Video testimonies by survivors added a deeply moving dimension, provoking many questions and reflections.
“Grandparents’ Land” through the eyes of the participants
Feedback received from young people and parents shows the powerful impact of these workshops:
🗣 “I never thought that a workshop about communism could challenge and surprise me like this. It was absolutely unpredictable, very dense and changed my perspective on the past.”
🗣 “The election experiment was brilliant! It showed us, through first-hand experience, how devastating the effect of electoral fraud can be. We were surprised by our own emotions.”
🗣 “I understood for the first time what it’s like to have something you care about confiscated. It’s not just about houses and land, but about losing a place full of memories and emotions.”
🗣 “My son Vladimir was deeply moved. He was sad, outraged and moved at the same time. This workshop was probably his most important lesson this year.”
A step towards a stronger collective memory
Through interactive and age-appropriate methods, the “Grandparents’ Land” workshops succeeded in making history a living experience. The participants not only learned about the past, but also felt some of the experiences of those who fought and suffered during that period, and were challenged to reflect on concepts such as freedom and democracy.
📸 Pictures and more details about the workshops can be found at the “Messages from the Future” exhibition in the Dungeon Tower of Țara Făgărașului Museum.
Gallery
Departments: Center for Anti-Communist Resistance and History (CRAI); Society, Crisis and Resilience; Policy Analysis and Outreach Department.
Regions: Romania, Țara Făgărașului.
Themes: Arts and Culture; Communism and Totalitarianism; Education; Interdisciplinarity; History; Freedom of Expression.