WE NEED THE MONUMENTS MEN
February 17th, 2010 | 3:31 pm
Photo Courtesy of CNN
As they say in westerns, “where’s the sheriff when you need one?”
I previously wrote about the damage to Haiti’s great national cathedral (blog dated February 9) and pointed out the hope that restoring it can bring to the citizens of this devastated country. These cultural symbols with which they have lived for decades bring hope and inspiration; they’re destruction conveys the opposite message. But in Haiti, like in war torn Europe at the end of World War II, the damage to culture went far beyond buildings and structures to include paintings, sculpture…in fact, most every form art takes. This was the overwhelming challenge faced by the Monuments Men and women in the days after the war.
Christiane Amanpour, one of the truly gifted journalists of our time, due in no small part to her years of travel and fascinating family of origin, “gets it” in my view on this and so many other subjects. Art matters; culture matters. They are priceless parts of our existence; when they are damaged or our ability to enjoy them restricted as was the case in Nazi Germany, our lives are greatly diminished in ways few appreciate until those horrible moments are presented. Christiane has prepared a great piece about the cost to Haiti in terms of its loss of cultural heritage due to the damage of works of art from the earthquake. The link is http://www.cnn.com/haitilostart.html
We must always state how much we mourn those who are no longer in Haiti, the tragic victims of this epic natural disaster. But our focus must now shift to those who have survived, and those who have a chance to recover. As time passes, these symbols of hope—the cultural heritage of a nation—will become increasingly important to the people of Haiti, perhaps less due to a desire to enjoy them initially and more so knowing that until the day when the rebuilding has begun, their cultural patrimony is safe. Compliments to Christiane Amanpour for her insights and program.
