[ Spaces of Identity ]

What is being cautious for the ones is "slave mentality" for the others.

In Tere Estimaa a short entry is to be found on just this topic of proposed "slave mentality". Cause of the controversy is Russia towards which some Estonians don't react as radically and self-confident as the author there wishes. Cause of the current controversy is the non-removal of the Bronze Soldier, monument or the liberation from Nazi Germany, in Tallinn.

According to the Baltic Times the problem is as follows:

Most ethnic Estonians see the Bronze Soldier stature, erected in 1949, as a sign of nearly half a century of Soviet occupation, while for many Russian-speakers it is a symbol of the Soviet victory over Nazism during World War II. They adorn the monument with flowers on Victory Day, May 9, and on Sept. 22, which they claim is the anniversary of the liberation of Tallinn from Nazi occupation. In the past couple of years, the laying of flowers has acquired an increasingly political flavor.

Thus, the discussion of removing or not removing the statue has less to do with any act of self liberation (in order to escape the status of mental slavery) than with respect for the second strong culture in Estonia, Estonians of Russian heritage.