#41
Travelogue Uzbekistan:
The Grieving Mother
Before the last war gets totally forgotten, let’s talk about war
memorials in Uzbekistan. Apart from a few Soviet-style flames for unknown soldiers and name lists of fallen soldiers the memorials seem to be all about
grieving mothers. Let me offer some thoughts:
What did the soldiers die for? The fighting was far away from Uzbekistan. Uzbek soldiers died defending the Soviet Union, not their Uzbek motherland. That’s why, unlike in Russia,
heroism cannot be the central theme.
Mother-ism
Women may not hold much power in public life, but as mothers they hold families together. Uzbeks have written countless
sentimental songs and poems about mothers.
Family collectivism
Losing a family member, especially an unmarried one, is a real
tragedy. It’s not so much about
individual suffering and losing one’s life but what the war
did to Uzbek families.
@afandi_english
