“I Love Watching Azarenka,” or How Fathers and Children Communicate in Belarus

In his column, our author addressed the pressing issue in Belarus of intergenerational conflict, which came to the fore during the political events of 2020. He analyzes how the older generation is sometimes prone to supporting propaganda-driven views, dismissing their children’s opinions even in situations of obvious injustice. The author shares his experiences regarding this divide and the difficulties he faces in communicating with those who are convinced by the distorted claims of Belarusian propaganda. The article addresses issues of differing values, political beliefs, and the influence of the media and propaganda on the formation of public opinion.

There has always been a generational conflict.

For as long as humanity can remember, children have considered themselves smarter than their parents, while parents have not taken their children’s opinions seriously. This is because children are still young; they don’t understand many things, aren’t well-versed in certain matters, and, in general, have little life experience.

The conflict was particularly acute during times of transition.

I think there was a lot of debate about farming. The old folks shouted that they’d been gathering roots their whole lives and had lived just fine. There’s no need to stick those seeds in the ground like fools! But the young people refused to move on; they camped out by the fields, waited for the harvest, and blamed the elders for holding back progress.

They apparently argued about that new-fangled bronze one, too. “A wooden plow is both lighter and more beautiful,” the elders used to say. “Your father plowed with one, and so did his father…”

Basically, it's always been this way, but what's happening now is still surprising.

I've heard many times from different people that their parents have a very unique way of looking at things.

And that's very strange, because at first glance, it's actually perfectly clear.

Absolute evil—what's so convenient about it, after all? It's very easy to recognize.

For example, whoever beats up a peaceful protester lying on the ground is in the wrong.

Anyone who puts innocent people behind bars is a criminal.

Whoever started the war is the aggressor.

Anyone who kills and rapes is a murderer and a rapist, and no neocolonial policy can justify it.

But when you start talking about this with your “elders,” it turns out that things aren’t quite so clear-cut, and sometimes they’re actually the exact opposite.

And if you have the patience to keep the conversation going, you might learn some incredible “facts.”

Of course, the Belarusian protesters were paid in 2020—you bet they were!

There was this one woman who showed up at the demonstration drunk and left her baby in a stroller right in the middle of the street…

A military plane is flying over my house—I love it so much! I'm waving at it!...

I love watching Azarenko on his show about politics. He really says all the right things on it!…

Solovyov is a talented journalist…

It's so painful to hear all this that many people just stop talking to each other.

And it hurts because they're people who are very close to me!

They fed you, clothed you, raised you, took you to your extracurricular activities, and helped you when you were a college student. You listened to them, absorbing their thoughts and their philosophy of life. They were your greatest role models.

And suddenly, these people who are so dear to my heart are calling black white.

They rejoice at the sight of Ukraine’s destroyed cities, the girls slaughtered in the kibbutzim, and the Belarusians rotting in prisons—people who simply wanted change.

But this isn't about political affiliations, like choosing between Democrats and Republicans, the right, the left, or the Greens.

This is a matter of fundamental values.

Should there be any laws in effect besides the truncheon?

Is it right to blow up residential buildings for the sake of some vague notion of historical justice or a linguistic issue?

Is it acceptable to imprison, maim, or kill innocent people simply because they think differently from you?

And when your loved ones give unexpected answers to these almost rhetorical questions, you’re left speechless.

And the funny thing is, there's just no way to explain any of it!

A person will be sitting in a basement under Russian shelling and cursing Zelenskyy.

Scraping by from one paycheck to the next and blaming everything on America.

And he will refuse to come to visit and see with his own eyes starving Poland and Lithuania, decaying Germany or Holland mired in sodomy.

And most of all in this sad story I am puzzled by the fact that all these noodles, which generously pour out of TVs, for some reason are digested easily and without problems. And the words of their own children are perceived with distrust and skepticism. 

Psychologists have developed entire manuals on how to communicate with relatives sent by propaganda. 

But it's true, it's very difficult to convince them, to show them a picture of the world that they don't want to see. 

After all, then you will have to come to terms with the fact that they could not. They failed. 

The result of everything they have done in life is a country stricken by dictatorship and corruption, rapidly losing its independence, with overcrowded prisons and the flower of the nation who has gone abroad.

A nightmarish result. 

Everything is much better on TV.

The opinion of the author coincides with the opinion of the editorial board of metroboy.pro