Singing Revolution
노래 혁명
A series of nonviolent independence campaigns waged against Soviet rule in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania from 1987 to 1991, named for the mass choral singing and national song festivals that served as its primary vehicle of resistance. Estonian artist Heinz Valk coined the term in June 1988 after tens of thousands gathered for spontaneous night-singing at the Tallinn Song Festival Grounds; the movement later produced the 1989 Baltic Way (a 600-kilometre human chain of two million people) and civilian barricades in Vilnius and Riga in 1991. The three Baltic republics restored their independence through this struggle, which transformed cultural identity into political force under the slogan 'spiritual power against military power' and entered the international canon of nonviolent resistance.
Related historical events
Sources
- Wikipedia (EN) definition, origin of the term by Heinz Valk, chronology of events from 1987 to 1991
- Wikipedia (RU) Russian-language overview: peaceful protests in Baltic republics 1987–1991, Tallinn Song Festival Grounds gathering of ~100,000, Baltic Way, casualties
- fpri.org Foreign Policy Research Institute: Heinz Valk coined the term, 'spiritual power against military power' slogan, January 1991 barricades and Vilnius TV tower events, nonviolent tactics and civilian-based defense
- enrs.eu European Network Remembrance and Solidarity: confirms Valk popularised the term after the 10–11 June 1988 Tallinn mass night-singing