A day of sorrow

[frualeydis]

Today it is twenty years since our prime minister, Olof Palme, was murdered. He was a controversial politician who was hated by the the political right, like the liberal and conservative party who organized hate campaigns against him. But he was also loved by so many. I loved him. I was only seventeen when he died but I had grown up trusting him; trusting his belief in and commitment to social justice; in Sweden and in the world.
He was a brave man, who attracted the wrath of the US government for daring to criticize the Vienam war. During his time Sweden gave shelter to thousands of refugees from the military dictatorships in Latin America. It was not all his work of course, but he cared personally too.
After he died the political right won. Not in terms of elections, but they won the right to set the political agenda. Reaganism/Thatcherism began to influence our politics, regardless of which party. Our politicians lost the belief that they could actually do something adn began to see pleasing "the market" as the primary goal for their work. The big industry were allowed to dictate the political decisions. Of course this is more pronounced when the conservative and liberal parties have the power, but the social democrats speak the same language as they do and have the same politics, just less extreme.
Olof Palme said that "Politik är att vilja", which means that politics is to want to do something. It seams like the social democrats has lot the will to change things and just want to defend the things they built up. That's not a bad thing, because there are some really good things there, but it's not enough. The conservative politicians of course wants to change things, but since they're only acting in self interest and couldn't give a damn about the less fortunate in society I fear their will to change. Even if the social democrats have lost every right to call themselves socialists by the politics they have these days, they are still a much better alternative. There are elections in the autumn, I worry about the outcome, but hope for the best.
Olof Palme would have been very old now and I don't know if him being alive would have changed anything in the late 80s and the 90s, but I like to think so.

Comments

[pooklaroux.livejournal.com]

Thanks for posting that. I am sad for your sad anniversary. It certainly would have been interesting to see what such a man might have done if he had been able to live longer, to hear his opinions and see his mark on the history that has unfolded in the past 20 years.

[therru.livejournal.com]

Thanks for reminding me. I don't remember the day, but that Spring. It was the same Spring that the Chernobyl reactor blew. It doesn't feel that long ago, but it was half my lifetime...

[flummoxicated.livejournal.com]

Thanks for posting this. It's sad to know that cynicism and reactionary conservatism is so powerful everywhere, not just in the States.

[yorkshirelad.livejournal.com]

Thanks you for reminding me that today was the anniversary of that most horrible day. I was almost 10 when he was killed and sadly do not remember hearing the news of his murder. But as I got older and started studding history I learned of him and what all he did. To me he came to represent what being a man truly is. For that I will offer prayers for him.

[tattycat.livejournal.com]

Olof Palme said that "Politik är att vilja", which means that politics is to want to do something.

Thank you, Eva. This is a principle I need to keep more in the front of my mind these days. I think the liberal factions here in the US (there are more than one, though it's not readily apparent) also spend much of our time holding the line, as it were, and less time trying to advance. It may bea function of the current political atmosphere to some extent, but we're also seeing a growing lack of the activist drive that was common up through the mid-90s.

So thank you for the reminder. Must go study some Swedish history now (*grins*), but I will keep Olof Palme in my (now very inspired) thoughts.