Is it always the day that makes a day complete?
21st February grew out of its history of being the day on which the Bengali Language Movement was launched in Bangladesh and went on to become the International Mother Language Day. It is not unique in terms of a community protesting a repression. It is unique because the events on one 21st February articulates the opinion that, the occupation of the linguistic frame also needs to be opposed fiercely.
Notarised valid replacements do not have humming vocal chords. Bad I say.
It is an existential crisis that is often justified by the power of the ruler as a necessary step in organising administration. So did Jinnah say( read this post for details). So did the Indian government say to the Bengalis in Assam (detailed post related to this coming up next).
As if a vibration different from the one that raises from your navel can change it all.
Language never has been solely a medium of expression. It has been used as a medium of repression and oppression as well. Language is political since an expression is opinionated. Hence, an expression is always political. Fisher Ames observed "[p]oliticks ... cannot have fixed principles" (ref). But, heading to this well-reasoned observation would mean the necessity to look beyond the covert gains of self-indulgent groups.
After the water broke, there were mirrors. Laid out before it will now be still.
In spite of it all, there are books. There are also days when the world takes it upon itself to chant the glory of books. That is the sheer beauty of it all. Even when there were, there are and there possibly will be books that are banned by a community or a country, there is a World Book Day.
March 7 is marked out in the calendars of the English and Irish literary small and big presses, small and big magazines as the World Book Day. April 23 is the date scheduled by UNESCO as the World Book Day, but UK and Ireland brought it forward to the first Thursday of March, to avoid clash of Easter holidays.
Even here, the polysemous aspect of language laughs unabashedly at our rigid, proper faces.
Beg, borrow or kill a date , it will never be more than a day/night's dream.
Italicised lines are random lines by me. Visit here to read my short take on this day for books.
