History

May 8, 1945, a special day

May 8, a signal emitted from Berlin traveling in concentric circles, and encompassing the world.

From the destroyed streets of Berlin a message rose: never again. The world must change. This peace ceremony was twofold. First came May 7, in the small school in Rheims, north-east France, and in the face of Russian anger, the ceremony marking May 8, thus delaying a ceasefire with Germany until May 9 (Soviet time). From May 7 to May 9, a difference is felt as it grows, and two separate blocs are formed.

If we broaden the circle, we can see the contradictions apparent on all sides of the Mediterranean. The French are preparing to land in Lebanon and Syria, though they have accepted the independence of these states.

A third circle allows us to examine the problems in Latin America, and the American intervention in Argentina´s domestic affairs. Here, Peron, no longer in power, prepares to regain his position by stirring up the descamisados.

The end of the war did not involve peace. But the martyrs´ memory would end up changing the world.