On 2 September 2020, the world is marking the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II (WWII). The war remains one of the most painful and conflicting episodes of the European nations’ memories. Many current conflicts are embedded in history and in the use of history as a political tool.
In May 2020, the EU-Russia Civil Society Forum released the short film “Clash of Memories: 75 Years after the End of WWII in Europe”. The film deals with historical memory and different modes of remembrance in Germany, Poland and Russia.
Taking the film as a starting point, the speakers seek answers to the following questions:
• What are the main narratives of remembering WWII in different European countries? Who are the major actors of the commemoration process?
• How does the clash of memories emerge? In which way do the current conflicts of memories relate to each other?
• How is the topic reflected in the history school education? Is a unified history (textbook) possible?
• What can be done to resolve these conflicts deriving from the historical past?
Speakers:
• Jörg Morré, German-Russian Museum Berlin-Karlshorst (Germany)
• Alexandra Lozinskaya, International Memorial (Russia)
• Jan Szkudliński, historian, a former specialist at the Museum of World War II (Poland)
Moderator:
• Steven Stegers, EuroClio (the Netherlands)
