It was not as much about the archives as it was about the people behind them. Archival materials are always impressive, but in their core, very clinical. Perhaps with samizdat, they are not as clinical as different materials one can encounter, but they still manage to tell only half of what a living person can tell you. So for me, it really was about these people, who managed the archives, who made samizdat, who helped the movement.

Zaira Záremská creator of the zine

Personally, but I think this applies to a lot of people from the Prague group, I found the interview with Anna Freimanová very impactful. Hearing her talk about all the things she did for the movement, but then also hearing her talk about how she " was not a hero," was an interesting dissonance, which I felt like needed to be highlighted. This is combined with other things we talked about in this programme that are not typically taught in schools.

Zaira Záremská creator of the zine

I remember a ton of discussion went into it, and I also remember that we were definitely influenced by the general beauty of Instytut Literacki. That, then, combined with how a lot of the work we discussed happened or really had to happen behind closed doors of houses and apartments.

Zaira Záremská creator of the zine

This zine was created as part of Freedom of Speech Beyond Borders, an interdisciplinary educational project introducing young people to the history of the struggle against censorship during the Cold War. The programme combines online seminars with study visits to European archives and memory sites, where participants explore the legacy of samizdat and tamizdat literature. Through archival research, workshops, and creative practice, participants collaborate to produce DIY publications inspired by underground publishing traditions.
Learn more about the project

The project is co-financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of Poland within the framework of the Inspiring Culture Programme.