Present, Past

 

Sitting at L'Hostalet, Place de Republique, Argeles-sur-mer, France with a glass of wine or a cup of tea, I can hear music across the square from the music school. It might be anything from a beautiful piano piece to the scratchings of a beginner's violin. I can chat with friends, read, write. All is normal for French village life.

The music school was once the village mairie, the town hall.

 

The square is surrounded by houses, hundreds of years old. Wednesdays and Saturdays are the scene of a marché and it is filled with stands selling veggies, cheeses, meats, honey, olives, plants and clothes.

 

On many summer nights there are dances. Many types of music can be represented by live bands: rock, Latin American, ballroom a mixture, even Texas line dancing. Villagers and tourists of all ages twirl or sit at the café and watch.

The Place de Rapublique was not always the center of normal activities.

On the music school is a plaque paying tribute to the brave women who staged a protest to the Vichy.

On the 29 April 1942 at 11:15 forty women demonstrated against the Vichy. On the 30th there were more.

I imagine how those women felt as they left their kitchens to stand for what they believed was right against their oppressor. How long had they been aware of the dangers that not just France but the world were facing as a madman spread his power and "normal" people flocked to him?

Today there are similar dangers but the oppressor is internal for Americans. Donald Trump, and those that support him, are putting my birth country and the world as I know it in grave danger. 

Much is different. During WWII, owning a radio to communicate with others could bring arrest, imprisonment and death. In 2024 there's the internet that spreads truth and lies around the world in seconds. Weapons, which destroyed much of Europe and Asia in the 1940s are nothing compared to what exists today. Much is the same in propaganda content as men and women usurp power and overthrow established norms and laws for their own gain. 

Like in the 1930s people are going about their ordinary lives, ignoring what is already too far along in the destruction of their lives. The forty women who demonstrated in Argelès are long dead, and in themselves did not stop the insanity. It took armies and bombs. 

Can what is happening be stopped? Is it too late? I hope not, but I'm afraid, very afraid.