Greek Reporter — On the 42nd anniversary of the November 17, 1973 student uprising against the colonels’ dictatorship, a cold chill embraces Athens in light of the bloody terrorist attack in Paris. This year Athenians and visitors from other cities place flowers not only in the Athens Polytechnic but at the French embassy as well. The shocking events in Paris put the celebration of the brave students’ resistance in the back seat.
Democracy in Greece was restored in 1974 and elected politicians used and abused the brave struggle of those people to their own ends. Even some of the Polytechnic heroes grew up and started cashing in on their moments of glory. The meaning of November 17 was twisted. A group of terrorists were named after that date and killed a number of their political opponents. Even the meaning of democracy was twisted to serve hateful purposes.
Today, politicians who were too young to take part in the uprising pretend that they would stand in front of the tank or claim some family connection to one of those who resisted the junta. And many of today’s more seasoned parliamentarians claim they fought against the junta themselves even though there is little evidence of their resistance.
Others while professing they live by the principles the Polytechnic students stood for, robbed the state and brought Greece to the sad state it’s in today.
Every year fewer people join the rally. The veneer of that great event has faded as people see that many confuse freedom with anarchy.On November 17, 2015 it would be more fair to say a big thanks to all the unknown heroes of that day who preferred to remain anonymous and stay in the romantic shadows of their ideals.
