“What is worth fighting for?” is the title of this station. That is also the question the House of Austrian History invites visitors to respond to here. Formulated differently, perhaps in less of a “fighting spirit”, the question might be: What do you stand up for? What is important to you?

The pieces of paper on the wall here give you an idea of the broad range of mind-sets, views and ideas individuals might have. It reflects issues that people who come to the House of Austrian History are concerned with. The demands formulated here are as diverse as the visitors themselves.

This broad spectrum of traces left by so many different people with so many different views and desires symbolizes the diversity of society itself. It also reveals a central and fundamental challenge for democracy: because of all these different attitudes and desires, it is, and will remain, impossible to reach a consensus for all. Conflicts are a key component of a well-functioning and vibrant democracy—conflicts are just part of it. The question, however, is how conflicts are dealt with, how compromises are reached and how people talk to one another.

Democracy only works if people “take part”. It is never a “finished product”, it is constantly in motion and always changing. Democracy is not a given. Many rights that seem to be “given” today were fought for and hard won over the past centuries. The objects in this museum are a testimony to this.

And even if fundamental rights and human rights do exist in many places, they are not always implemented through and through. Still, many do not have fundamental and human rights.

At this point, we invite you to reflect upon this: To take a piece of paper and pencil, and to leave your answer to this question here: What is your role in a democratic society? What do you find important to stand up for?