De stem der lage landen, nr. 12, 15 mei 1945 Possibly 1945

Curator: This unassuming page is a print from May 15th, 1945, titled "De Stem der Lage Landen," or "The Voice of the Lowlands." The author was Ed. Hoornik. What's your initial take on it? Editor: It feels raw and immediate. It’s just a page of dense text, almost like a memo or public announcement. The date jumps out - so close to the end of the war. It feels very practical, and perhaps a little anxious? What do you see in this piece? Curator: Anxiousness, definitely. The text, an appeal to recently liberated Dutch people, vibrates with a society picking up the pieces. There’s this incredibly direct language. Can you sense the moral outrage bleeding through? Editor: I think so. The text warns against looting and causing trouble for the already devastated population, right? Curator: Exactly! There is also an element that seems very "Dutch," namely its meticulous call to not use violence unless absolutely necessary. Even though the war just ended. It’s so deeply rooted in the culture. Isn't that amazing? Editor: It's striking. You’d think after such immense trauma, there’d be a desire for harsher measures, but instead, there's this plea for order and ethical behavior. Did the 'post-internet' tag truly fit? Curator: It feels correct, even if unexpected. Think about the instant, ephemeral, and replicable nature of information in our digital age; this is its historical precedent. Editor: It gives you a unique vantage to grasp the magnitude of those events, and the rapid exchange of feelings among its contemporaries, in such raw form.