Beyond Memory. Can we really learn from the past?

Since the 1990s, transmitting the memory of violent pasts has been utilised in attempts to foster tolerance and fight racism, hate and antisemitism. However, countries that invested in memory policies have overseen the rise of hate crimes and populisms instead of growing social cohesion. Breaking with the usual moralistic position, this talk will takes stock of this situation. Where do these memory policies come from? Whom do they serve? Can we make them more effective? In other words, can we really learn from the past? At a time when memory studies is blooming, it is urgent to question the normative belief in the effects of memory.

Sarah Gensburger is a political scientist and an historian at the French National Center for Scientific Research. She is the author of several books among, the most recent ones, which Beyond Memory. Can we really from the Past ? (co-authored with Sandrine Lefranc, Palgrave, 2020) and Memory on my doorstep. Chronicles of the Bataclan Neighborhood, Paris 2015-2016 (Leuven University Press, 2019).

Lecture language: English
The lecture will be held online via Zoom.

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