Charter 77, a civic initiative demanding adherence to human and civil rights, was the most important form of resistance to the communist regime and normalization. The fortieth anniversary of its publication gives us an opportunity to present the situation of the Jewish community during the normalization period, undeniably unique on the one hand while on the other a microcosm in which similar processes no less intense than those affecting society at large were taking place. The exhibition presents concrete cases of StB operations against Jewish communities, the dilemmas faced by community members, and the involvement of several members in dissident and other activities outside the official scope of Jewish communities. Yet the exhibition will show more than the myriad forms “anti-Zionist” propaganda took during this period and its impact on individual lives. Normalization also entailed the destruction of Jewish cemeteries, the demolition of synagogues, and the obstruction of research and study into the fate of Jews during the Second World War as well as policies that nearly eradicated Judaism completely. On display will be photographs depicting daily Jewish life, the efforts made to preserve it despite the coordinated attempts of the communist regime to suppress any sort of meaningful activity, especially the passing down of Jewish traditions from one generation to the next. Brought together from a number of archives, the majority of the unique documents and photographs are being exhibited for the very first time.

Robert Guttmann Gallery