What can you do? What will you do?
History. Facts. Truth. These things are set in stone. For instance, Macedonians voted, on September 8, 1991, for an independent and sovereign Republic of Macedonia. And yet, the other week, on the occasion of the visit of Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras to Macedonia, Macedonian Foreign Minister Nikola Dimitrov tweeted out “The first ever bilateral official visit of a Greek PM to North Macedonia since our independence in 1991.” He is right on that being a “first visit,” and dead wrong on the name — Macedonians voted for the Republic of Macedonia on September 8, 1991. In the meantime, Stevo Pendarovski, the joint SDSM-DUI, Zaev/Ahmeti, Socialist/Albanian Nationalist candidate for president, welcomed Tsipras to “our country,” and the national anthem of Macedonia, “Today Over Macedonia,” was not played at the beginning of his visit, as it is always played for visiting dignitaries, probably because the song is about well, Macedonia, and how Macedonians fought for, well, Macedonia. And, not to put too fine a point on it, Tsipras, during his press conference, stressed to the media that there must be “changes in school history books” basically stating that Greece has primacy over the teaching of Macedonia’s children.
We see a lot of this now with respect to Macedonia — in official Macedonian Government propaganda and statements, in the Western press, among Western embassies and the political class in those Western countries, in NATO, the EU, the US State Department, in academia, in think-tanks, etc. It’s important to realize that this all-out assault on Macedonia and the Macedonians will not stop as long as Zoran Zaev and Ali Ahmeti and their Government continues their efforts to change Macedonia’s name, identity, history, heritage, culture, language and much more. It will not end until they are out of Government. And then all of the damage they have done must be repaired which will take years.
So in the meantime, what can you do? What will you do?
Broadly speaking, there must be pro-active and reactive efforts. Obviously pro-active means getting out ahead of Zaev/Ahmeti and all those who are working to change Macedonia into something it is not and sharing information, explaining the truth, facts, and history about Macedonia and the current situation to all who are willing to listen and learn. Reactive means reacting to the lies, misinformation, half-truths and other propaganda being spread by Zaev, Ahmeti and the Western elites and all those who are working to change Macedonia into something it is not. And within both of those broad efforts, there is both content — the information you want to communicate — and channels — the method by which you share that information. And within all of this, don’t forget to use, where appropriate, humor, satire, and parody.
Everyone has a role to play in doing something to help Macedonia and the Macedonians, and this includes those in Macedonia, and those outside of Macedonia. There are a number of excellent Macedonian diaspora organizations working on behalf of Macedonia in the United States, Canada, Australia, and throughout Europe and in working with them, you can work for Macedonia. Likewise, there are many Macedonian cultural groups in Macedonia, in Greece, and around the world, working to encourage, support and sustain Macedonia’s rich culture, heritage, history and language in various ways, and all of them have something to offer those who want to join and help Macedonia.
As I wrote in mid-March, I’d like to see Macedonians agree to a Macedonian Covenant in which they would make a “pledge and a promise to each other: to encourage each other to support Macedonia and Macedonians to the extent that each individual has ability and resources, and to support the very soul of Macedonia — those attitudes, that spirit, those things, which make Macedonia unique in our world. It would be, in a manner of speaking, a rediscovery: it would entail a renewed understanding of and appreciation and affirmation for the goodness of Macedonia and the Macedonians.” I think we are already seeing this, a bit of reaction to the action of Zaev/Ahmeti. One superb example is the overwhelmingly positive response to the new song and video from the Macedonian band Next Time, “Nesto ke te pitam babo,” a stark and hauntingly beautiful song about Macedonia and its history. In two weeks it has garnered nearly one million hits on YouTube. Another excellent example is my friend Mario Hristovski and his “Mario’s History Talks” on YouTube which are not only fun and educational, but also infuriate the Greeks and Bulgarians.
Some of the things that I’m currently engaged in to support Macedonia include writing columns; since 2001, I’ve written over 700 columns about Macedonia and targeted to the Macedonians and today, those columns are in English, translated by a friend into Macedonian, and then put into audio; podcasts (currently, I collaborate with my friend Cvetin Chilimanov in doing a weekly podcast, the Macedonian Content Farmers Podcast, a look at Macedonia, from a traditional conservative worldview, about current events in Macedonia); and using social media to educate, encourage, and sometimes entertain both Macedonians and non-Macedonians about what is going on in Macedonia.
Lastly, there is one thing everyone can do for Macedonia, regardless of their own personal position in life, status, financial condition or even health: and that is pray. Pray for Macedonia. Pray for the Macedonians. Pray for spiritual revival in Macedonia. Pray for the protection of Macedonia. Pray for wisdom. Pray, pray often, and then pray some more. Not only do I pray every morning and every night for Macedonia and the Macedonians, but I pray throughout the day for specific situations and for specific people.
You’ve had it worse, Macedonia — there were times before when Macedonians were killed, raped, thrown out of their homes, and had their family names forcibly changed. But don’t wait for that to happen. Take a stand. The time is now — Macedonia calls you. What can you do? What will you do?
