Cultural Memory and the Representation of Genocide
as a Concern for Social Justice
Oregon State University, April 16, 2010.
This symposium addresses questions regarding the exclusivity of memory construction to
specific groups, specifically the compatibility of different versions of "cultural memory," as well as
the conflict of individual vs. collective memory.
This relates specifically to the attempt to generate a coherent narrative representing the entirety
of a culture, to create a cultural memory that everybody may share. Such efforts are challenged
by a multitude of coinciding versions of cultural memory, especially by groups that are not part of
the mainstream culture and possess their own distinct cultural memory, but also by individuals
whose personal accounts of historical events may be at odds with the larger narrative.
Genocide constitutes one of the most radical challenges to cultural representation and to the
creation and maintenance of cultural memory. The continued remembrance of unimaginable
horrors, of individual and collective suffering, but also of the commission of unimaginable deeds,
asks for the very re-imagining of such events. These memories, brought into the fold of the
larger culture, ask for adequate representation so as to not just represent suffering, but also to
stand as a call to social justice and its responsibility for present and future generations. The
construction of such a joint cultural memory oftentimes, however, is contingent upon the ability of
different groups to actually recognize the validity of divergent historical narratives.
This symposium seeks to bring together senior level undergraduate students and Graduate
students to participate in a presentation and discussion of questions of cultural memory and the
representation of genocide. These ruptures in cultural memory and mainstream narratives may
be found in how we re-member or dis-member the history and cultural experiences of the Jewish
Holocaust (and its multiple factors), African American diasporic experiences, American Indian
and indigenous experiences of dispossession and sovereignty, Asian American diaspora and
internment experiences, LGBTQ community and the Holocaust as well as narratives of historical
exclusion, The Latino migration and dispossession experience. In addition, the symposium
welcomes presentations on the international experience which extends beyond the borders of
the United States narrative of cultural memory.
Tentative Program:
Presenters should be prepared to present for a maximum of 20 minutes, allow at least ten
minutes for questions and discussion. Audiovisual needs will be accommodated. Please submit
your proposal by April 12, 2010 to email: [email protected]
DATE:
April 16, 2010
TIME:
10:00AM-4:00PM; Lunch provided with dinner afterward on your own
PLACE:
Oregon State University, Joyce Powell Leadership Room