By: Mustafa Cerić
Mr. Rod Blagojevic,
you ask your question with a level of naïveté that would be touching if it were not offensive. You ask what Americans would do if someone forbade them from celebrating the Fourth of July. A wonderful question — only you asked it on the wrong continent, to the wrong people, and with the wrong intention.
If Srebrenica had happened to Americans, there would be no debate about “different narratives.” There would be no relativization. No weighing of “who started first.” Genocide would not be turned into folklore, and criminals would not be elevated into heroes.
If Srebrenica had happened to Americans, January 9 would not be a holiday — it would be a day of national shame, marked by black ribbons, moments of silence, and criminal charges for anyone who dared to celebrate it.
Just imagine, Rod, for a moment:
Pearl Harbor — but the aggressor celebrates the date every year.
9/11 — but the perpetrators proudly commemorate the day, deny the victims, and wave flags over the ruins.
And then imagine some “world-roaming con man” from Europe arriving to lecture Americans about how this is all “freedom of expression.”
Do you know what Americans would do?
They would not write opinion columns.
