I remember that dissidents in the former Soviet Union discussed similar
issue (e.g., Stalinist repression, collaborating with KGB, Afghanistan
vets). They analyzed trails of Nazis after the W.W.II and the US Vietnam
experience. Their general conclusion was: 1) considering the level of
activism versus threat-driven reactions of people participating in
oppression of others and 2) in separation of public and private
condemnation. In short, those who were proactive have to be publicly (an=
d
legally) condemned while those who were reactive should be left to their =
own
devices of condemnation. They also addressed societal responsibility for
not protecting people from participation in oppression when they did it
under a threat.
Eugene
----- Original Message -----
From: Ricardo Ottoni <rjapias who-is-at ibm.net>
To: <xmca who-is-at weber.ucsd.edu>
Sent: Monday, March 22, 1999 4:49 PM
Subject: Re: maybe silence?
> Mr. Goodman,
>
>
> Reading your message I remember that many brazilian celebrities,
> during military dictatorship, had a similar behavior as E. Kazan.
> Nevertheless, some of them had a "double" (dialectical?!) activity.
> They give names to military Government and, at the same time, provided
> those persons who had their names given with "hot" information,
> helping them to escape from jail.
> For example, there was a famous TV showman (Fl=E1cio Cavalcante) that p=
ut
> a very famous brazilian actress (Leila Diniz) - an idexed people to
> military government - to talk in front cameras and before policemen
> could catch her, helped her escape from them, in such a way that it was
> like He had nothing within it. Can you understand me?
> As he, we know about many others that act in a similar way, like
> "Arlechino" by Goldonni.
> Are there similar stories/histories on history like that in USA during
> MCarthism?
>
> in a by them Ken Goodman wrote:
> >
> > There are some striking similarities between the -context- in which E=
lia
> > Kazan named names for McCarthy and the political context of repressio=
n
> > and intimidation of teachers and learners in California and the natio=
n.
> > Arthur Miller in the current Nation quotes Dalton Trumbo as saying
> > everyone was a victim. But some chose jail and others collaborated to
> > save themselves. Those who did not live it will probably never
> > understand this difference. Now those who promote the attacks have
> > learned to be much more subtle- marginalizing their targets, imposing
> > their blacklists, co-opting potential opposition without providing th=
em
> > the forum to express their opposition. I started my career as a teach=
er
> > when loyalty oaths were being imposed, when it was dangerous to teach
> > about the United Nations, when many teachers were quietly fired. At
> > least at that time there was visible opposition from the left and fro=
m
> > others who eventually brought McCarthy down. Where is that coalition =
now
> > that we need it again. Where are the unions, where are the academics =
who
> > will defend public education today?
> > Ken Goodman
> > --
> > Kenneth S. Goodman, Professor, Language, Reading & Culture
> > 504 College of Education, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ
> > fax 520 7456895 phone 520 6217868
> >
> > These are mean times- and in the mean time
> > We need to Learn to Live Under Water