September 2016

THE THIRD INTERDISCIPLINARY CLASSROOM IN BELGRADE

The third interdisciplinary classroom in Belgrade represents the last classroom that was implemented within PILAR programme by TPO Foundation. Students gathered at the Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade where they could learn how history is being interpreted and how to use civic activism in order to raise awareness and perceiving history and its influence to the present and future from a completely different perspective.
In accordance with this students managed to hear more about abuse and setting up of significant historical dates because we all believe that at least dates are something that should be accurate in the history. Reality is still something completely different. Professor Stojanović witnessed the research she conducted with her fellow colleagues from various parts of the world and they found plenty of manipulations in the dates of significant historical events. They are currently working on the project of schoolbooks writing that are historically accurate and deal with the themes of world and regional history. Ms. Staša Zajović, a co-founder of organisation ''Žene u crnom (Women in Black)'' presented its work and the ways of resistance against every kind of discrimination. Two short films were shown dealing with the protest in front of the National Assembly of Republic of Serbia when this organisation requested for July 11 to be declared as day of mourning in Serbia and a film about commemoration to victims of Vukovar. Professor Pissari discussed the forgotten and concealed Holocaust of Roma which was conducted in various European countries from WWI onwards. Professors Bešlin and Samardžić presented the influence of historical revisionism and political use of history and language as an ultimate mean of deceitfulness of people and seeding of discord. Ms. Sonja Biserko took us to the walk through various documents such as Declaration of Hague that led to the dissolution of Yugoslavia.

After the completion of this cycle of classrooms the online material is being prepared which will make the crown of this part of PILAR programme and sum up the impressions and results of the classrooms in one place. More than one hundred students from various fields attended these classrooms and according to that the main result would be that future generations of historians, linguists, civic activists and all others work diligently and shed light on historical truths and overcoming of imaginary differences.