Victory Day in St. Petersburg, 2005, by Gg1goalie

From MemoryArchive

Who: Gwen Grewe
What: Victory Day
When: 9 May 2005
Where: St Petersburg, Russia

Victory day for Russia is 9 may 1945 and not 8 May 1945 for the reason that when Winston Churchill announced that the Allied Powers were victorious over Germany, the time was already 1:00 am in Russia.

The city of St. Petersburg had been planning the celebration of the 60th anniversary of the victory over the Fascists for months. The fervor and patriotism, the Russian people exhibited, was overwhelming. At one point a Russian girl, with whom I played soccer, asked me: "Who do you think won the Great War for the Fatherland (what the western world knows as World War II)?" I responded that the Soviet Union and the United States fought on opposite fronts to win the war. She quickly replied that I was mistaken, that only the Soviet won the war. She added that if it was not for the Soviet Union we all would be speaking German (At which point I told her that I did speak German). In all of the metro stations and on the streets of St Petersburg were pictures of the Heros of St Petersburg. Soldiers, officers and blockade workers who died and who are still alive today, saluting the sacrifices made for Russia and Leningrad. For St Petersburg, the victory on 9 may 1945 was not simply a victory that beat down Germany or led Russia to Victory. It was a fight for survival. The Fascists had blockaded the city of Leningrad for 900 days, in the attempt to capture the city.

On the days leading up to 9 May, the television stations were playing war films and showing documentaries about the blockade and the war. On the day of 9 May I saw the huge banners proclaiming the 60th anniversary of the triumph of Russia and watch the parade pass me by on Nevsky Prospekt with marching veterans and people of every club and institution represented, I was impressed and in disbelief that was bearing witness to this event. Dignitaries were on television specials on which songs were sung in honor of those who had died and those who are still alive.

I had spoken with my parents on the western Victory Day and asked them if there were celebrations on the same level as St Petersburg was going to have. My parents had said that not much was being done to commemorate the 60th anniversary in the United States. Later I asked a Russian friend of mine why the 60th anniversary was a huge celebration and that the 50th anniversary was not as publicized. I asked this because in the United States the 50th anniversary of 8 May 1945 was given a great amount of attention. I was told that there was such political turmoil in Russia in 1995 that there was not sufficient funds nor opportunity to properly commemorate the 50th anniversary of defeat of the Fascists.