LIAS: The Opposite of Forgetting is Justice

As a Public Fellow, Charlotte Wiedemann will bring the LIAS's programme to the public sphere through her areas of expertise, including European and global cultures of remembrance, as she did that evening at "mosaique." Simultaneously, she adds a non-academic dimension to the discourse at LIAS: her global journalistic work, her incorporation of perspectives from the Global South on cultural and political crises, and her civic engagement are intended to enrich the research conducted at LIAS.

The subtitle of her book, Den Schmerz der anderen begreifen (Understanding the Pain of Others, 2022), is "Holocaust and World Memory." In it, she broadens the perspective on remembrance to encompass acts of violence against humanity and genocides in the countries once colonised by the German Empire in Africa.

Since no one possesses a "drone's-eye view" of world memory that is objective, impartial, or universally valid, Wiedemann argues that "we only have different perspectives," and that these contribute to making the historical experiences outside of Europe and the West part of a respected and necessary canon of knowledge and world memory.

Which victims have a voice?

The remembrance culture established in Germany over the past 40 years, in Wiedemann's view, must continue to evolve and incorporate colonial crimes and genocides. This predominantly concerns Tanzania, Rwanda, and Namibia. This shift would allow us to confront the observation that hierarchies exist within cultures of remembrance. Wiedemann asks: "Which victims have a voice beyond the small sphere of direct descendants? And whose suffering resonates with the entire world?" These questions, she argues, are less about specific historical events and more about the fact that "there are, ultimately, racist, or at least non-universal and non-egalitarian conceptions of humanity, and that the descendants of certain victims are accorded different statuses." As long as this "scaling of suffering" persists, justice remains elusive. And, she argues, the opposite of forgetting is not remembrance, but justice. As an example, she cited Federal President Walter Steinmeier's visit to the Maji-Maji Museum in Songea, Tanzania in November 2023, where he apologised for the 300,000 victims of one of the largest colonial wars of the German Empire at the beginning of the 20th century – but no further actions followed. 

Culture of Remembrance and Democratic Capacity

Wiedemann expressed her disappointment that the memory of the Holocaust has not fostered greater sensitivity among Germans towards the victims of other crimes, especially those committed during colonialism, or nurtured an awareness of the equality of all people. According to a study by the European Union's Agency for Fundamental Rights, Germany ranks among the most racist countries in Europe in its attitudes towards Black people. This suggests that the long-fought-for culture of remembrance in Germany has not led to a greater capacity for democracy, nor has it helped to fortify society against authoritarian temptations. "It pains me to say this, but I have lost that belief," Wiedemann confessed. "It is deeply painful, for I belong to the generation that has campaigned for this remembrance for many years." An extra-European perspective must be incorporated into historical analysis, Wiedemann contends, to make remembrance more inclusive and just, without setting one against the other.

In response to an audience member's question about what those present at the mosaique could do in such a situation, Charlotte Wiedemann offered a forward-looking perspective, suggesting that Europe needs a coalition of various civil society, human rights organisations, and historical workshops working together to change Europe's stance on these issues. Additionally, each individual could begin to pay closer attention to the traces of colonial history in their own neighbourhood. Discussions surrounding street names with colonial connotations offer an opportunity to engage more deeply with the colonial era. Until 2008, for instance, Lüneburg had a "Carl-Peters-Straße," named after the founder of the colony "German East Africa," whose racist convictions and violent actions were already known during his lifetime. The street is now named "Albert-Schweitzer-Straße."