Introduction

On February 17, 2016, the Estonian Museum of Occupations invited friends and institutional representatives “on a trip through the next couple of years, through the time when the building will be re-born inside and outside.” The museum proposed to “ponder the question of how to maintain freedom and how to stand for freedom.” The organizers promised to answer some questions about the future of the museum, about the new permanent exhibition, and about the people behind the new ideas. The expected change of name – from the Museum of Occupations to the Museum of Freedom – was not disclosed beforehand, but it was the name change that activated a broader discussion about remembering in Estonian society.

The event took place in the building of the Museum of Occupations located in the city center of Tallinn, close to Toompea Hill. The main actors on the podium were the President of Estonia, Toomas Hendrik Ilves (2006-2016), a member of the board of the museum and start-up entrepreneur Sten Tamkivi, and the managing director of the museum, Merilin Piipuu. The first part of the event was dedicated to the question of fundraising and the role of civil society related to it: the goal of the museum was to fund a new permanent exhibition and reconstruction of the building. First, Ilves and Tamkivi discussed the topic of fundraising, based on examples from the U.S. and Estonia, stressing the initiative of citizens in “public” matters.