Cultural Diversity and Public Memory in Poland and Central Europe

Abstract

Student and faculty participants in the "Experiencing the New Europe" 2012 summer study abroad program will share their research on the diversity of ethnic culture in the region that lies in between Germany and Russia, a place where a history of pogroms, war, occupation and shifting borders has resulted in complex issues regarding collective identity and the preservation of public memory. The attempted erasure of Jewish and Roma people and culture, the displacement and relocation of Poles, the repatriation of once German cities as Polish, and the period of Soviet occupation are among the complex circumstances of Poland and Central European history and culture. This presentation will showcase our research and personal experiences investigating collective identity and public memory in this part of the world, and will argue for the necessity of memorializing a complicated, painful, and, in some cases, hidden past. A photography display will illustrate the multiple layers of ethnic heritage.