Between Resistance and Silencing

25 April, the Estado Novo’s opponents and memory wars

Abstract

This article examines the construction and contestation of memory(ies) surrounding the 25th of April and the opposition to the Estado Novo regime in Portugal, with particular attention to the roles played by public policies, local initiatives, artistic expressions, and civil society actions in recent decades. It argues that art – through public interventions, performances, exhibitions, cinema, and visual practices – functions as a privileged medium for reinscribing historical memory, simultaneously serving as a form of resistance, critique, and reimagination of the past. The study explores how the memory of the Revolution and the anti-dictatorship resistance is continuously (re)negotiated in the public sphere, especially in the context of the 50th anniversary commemorations. The article highlights the challenges posed by generational distance, growing ideological polarisation, and the risks of banalisation or instrumentalisation of memory. Through the analysis of memorial devices – including museums, monuments, and artistic works – it advocates for a critical, decentralised, and participatory memorial landscape, actively engaging artistic creation as an essential tool for preserving democratic values and active citizenship.