History for the day

CNN.com has an article about the fall of communism in then-Czechoslovakia:

Czech students will take to the streets Tuesday, just as they did two decades ago when their historic march ushered in the fall of communist rule. The commemorative parade will follow the route students took in 1989 when they were blocked by police from entering Wenceslas Square in the heart of the capital, Prague. The student clashes with police triggered a series of events that eventually rid then-Czechoslovakia of totalitarianism.
Tuesday's parades are part of the celebrations marking the twentieth anniversary of the Velvet Revolution, named so for being largely peaceful and soft like the plush material. Thousands are expected to turn out for music, rallies, and other events throughout the country organized by Opona, a nonprofit group established to observe the milestone anniversary of the dismantling of the Iron Curtain. Opona said Prague will experience its biggest street party ever. But the events serve a more somber purpose as well: to serve as reminder to those who may not remember life in a totalitarian state.
"Our inspiration to do this was from our memories; we still remember the times that preceded the events," said David Gaydecka, one of the organizers. "We believe that the changes in those twenty years have been positive despite all those maladies which came along with the freedom."
A concert will follow the afternoon march in Prague. Writer and former President Vaclav Havel, the iconic architect of the Velvet Revolution, is to address the crowd at Wenceslas Square. The English-language Prague Post said beer and other beverages will be on sale at communist prices in a light-hearted attempt to mimic life before the revolution. Items that were regarded as scarce luxuries under communism— bananas, oranges, and sweets— will be handed out to children.
Current photo exhibits document what life was like before there was freedom of expression, before people had a choices in life.
17 November has significance in the Czech Republic dating to 1939, when Nazi authorities clamped down on demonstrators, executing nine student organizers and sending 1,200 others to the Sachsenhausen-Oranienburg concentration camp. The march in 1989 was in memory of the students who perished under the Nazis. About 15,000 people turned out to participate; students were joined by teachers, professors and ordinary Czechs who had grown weary of state control. Mass demonstrations continued for ten days and the regime began to crumble. Finally, on 29 December, after forty years of communism, Havel was named president.