Twenty years ago today, the Berlin Wall was breached and Soviet communism, at long last, entered its death spiral. After claiming approximately 100 million victims in the 20th century, communism was dismissed to the ash heap of history. But those who suffered under its boot heel have largely been confined to the history books when not forgotten altogether. Author and historian Lee Edwards set out to correct this oversight with the creation of the Victims of Communism memorial and online museum, dedicated to those who perished because of Communist regimes between 1917 and 1989. Reason.tv spoke to Edwards about the importance of historical memory, plans for a forthcoming bricks-and-mortar museum in Washington, DC, and the paintings of Ukrainian gulag survivor Nikolai Gettman, currently on display at the Heritage Foundation, where Edwards is a Distinguished Fellow in Conservative Thought. Produced by Meredith Bragg and Michael C. Moynihan. Interview by Moynihan. Shot and edited by Bragg. Approximately 4 minutes. For downloadable versions of this and all Reason.tv videos, go to Twenty years ago today, the Berlin Wall was breached and Soviet communism, at long last, entered its death spiral. After claiming approximately 100 million victims in the 20th century, communism was dismissed to the ash heap of history. But those who suffered under its boot heel have largely been confined to the history books when not forgotten altogether. Author and historian Lee Edwards set out to correct this oversight with the creation of the Victims of Communism memorial and online museum, dedicated to those who perished because of Communist regimes between 1917 and 1989. Reason.tv spoke to Edwards about the importance of historical memory, plans for a forthcoming bricks-and-mortar museum in Washington, DC, and the paintings of Ukrainian gulag survivor Nikolai Gettman, currently on display at the Heritage Foundation, where Edwards is a Distinguished Fellow in Conservative Thought. Produced by Meredith Bragg and Michael C. Moynihan. Interview by Moynihan. Shot and edited by Bragg. Approximately 4 minutes. For downloadable versions of this and all Reason.tv videos, go to President Bushs comments at the dedication of a memorial honoring the victims of communismCHAN: More than 100 thousand people were shot in the 30-s in one of the forests near Kyiv. At first people thought that it was done by the Nazi, but then it was discovered that it was done by the communists. In the Bykovnia forest, many high ranking officials gather to remember victims of that regime. Heres our correspondents with more. The tragedy in Bykovniansky forest is considered to be at the same level as Auschwitz, Dachau, Buchenwald and Babi Yar. Today children and family members of victims along with high officials gathered in this forest to pay tribute to the victims. This woman is 86. She came to remember her father. For a long period of time the communists didnt let her know the real place of her fathers grave. [Olga Kuzmenko, daughter of victim]: female There were three children in our family. The Soviet army broke into our house, and started searching, threw all the things and took our father. They told us that he was sent to Siberia without the right to write to us for 10 years. They told us he died from an ulcer. But later it turned out that he was brought to this forest. They tortured him for three month and then killed him The President of Ukraine also came to the event. He called upon everyone to condemn the communist regime for killing innocent people. [Viktor Yuschenko, President of Ukraine]: male Even in our prayers we are still afraid to say who killed our grand parents. We call it the totalitarian regime. Let us be honest. Our grandparents were killed by the communist regime. I said it for our children to know who is the killer. This regime dreamed about total control, and to gain it they had to turn all people into animals, to make them forget about morality, spirituality, and to become not a human being. Of coarse this could never happen because good always defeats evil. Each year many people come here. They bring candles and flowers. Roma is 8 years old. He came here because his grandmother was killed in Bykivnia forest. [Roma, Grandchild of Victim]: male I came to remember people who were killed for speaking Ukrainian, wearing traditional Ukrainian clothes and loved their native land the same as I love it. I am very sorry for this people And this woman says that it is very difficult not to cry looking at this place, because the best people from Ukrainian nation were buried here. [Paraskoviya]: female The best people from Ukrainian nation are lying here. They were the real patriots. If they were alive our country would be the most prosperous in Europe. To eliminate the best from the nation communist regime had to kill patriots and intellectuals Nowadays Bykivnia is considered to be

• published: 17 Jan 2014
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