Memory Activism and Digital Practices after Conflict: Unwanted Memories

Description

Memory politics as a space of state-sponsored as well as civic activities has been at the heart of inquiries in critical peace and conflict studies. This book investigates the study of memory activism and memory of activism, emerging after conflict, as a political civic action. It examines the appearance and growth of memory activism in Serbia amid the legacies of unwanted memories of the wars of the 1990s, approaching the post-Yugoslav region as a region of memory activism and tracing the alternative calendars and alternative commemorative practices of memory activists as they have evolved over a period of more than two decades. By presenting in-depth accounts of memory activism practices, on-site and online, Memory Activism and Digital Memory Practices after Conflict: Unwanted Memories analyses this evolution in the context of generational belonging and introduces frameworks for the study of alternative commemorations and commemorative solidarity. Cover Table of Contents Preface Acknowledgements Introduction Memory Activism and Alternative Commemorative Practices after Conflict Memory activism and memory of activism after conflict Agentic activism: a positive turn in memory studies, a local turn in peace and conflict studies Non-state commemorations: alternative commemorative events after conflict Generational belonging in memory activism Outline of the book Bibliography 1. Unwanted Memories of (the Wars of) the 1990s Referencing the 1990s The recent past is still present Memory politics and public knowledge of the wars of the 1990s The 1990s in the state calendar and state-sponsored commemorations Memory activism after conflict: remembering the wars of the 1990s in Serbia Bibliography 2. ‘Not in My Name’ From Anti-War to Memory Activism: The First Generation Memory activism as an extension of anti-war activism and the emergence of an alternative civic calendar Commemorating Srebrenica in Belgrade: 10 July on the alternative calendar Generational commemorative legacy Bibliography 3. ‘Too Young to Remember, Determined Never to Forget’ The Second Generation A new generation, a new slogan Continuity and change in the commemoration of Srebrenica in Belgrade The burden of a silenced past: remembering the Suva Reka massacre and mass graves in Batajnica Beyond annual commemorations: remembering Batajnica through alternative education and art The Batajnica Memorial Initiative Memory walks: marking and visiting sites of suppressed memory Memory activism as protest: opposing the public glorification of war crimes Bibliography 4. Hashtag Memory Activism Digital Memory Practices and Online Commemorations #Hashtag #memoryactivism #Sedamhiljada: from a hashtag to a banned commemoration #NisuNašiHeroji: generational mnemonic claims and the post-Yugoslav space as a region of memory #JesteSeDesilo: disseminating knowledge as an act of silence breaking #WhiteArmbandDay: from local to regional and transnational memory activism Bibliography 5. Regions of Memory The Post-Yugoslav Space as a Region of Memory Activism Regions of memory and of memory activism Regional cooperation as a ‘crowded playground’ Regional networks of joint action and joint claims Remembering Yugoslavia and the anti-fascist struggle Regional platforms for engagement with memories of the wars of the 1990s Commemorative solidarity and the wars of the 1990s Bibliography Epilogue Unwanted Pasts in an Unresolved Present Bibliography Appendices Appendix 1 YIHR Transitional Justice Calendar Appendix 2 March 2010 YIHR Announcement of ‘Action to commemorate crimes committed in Kosovo in March and April 1999’ Appendix 3 CPI Brochure: ‘Program of guided tours to places of “Suppressed memories”’ Appendix 4 Women’s Court Invitation to Hear Public Testimonies in Sarajevo, May 2015 Bibliography Index List of Figures Figure 1 The divided Republic Square, 10 July 2009 Figure 2 The Women in Black-led commemoration on Republic Square on10 July (left); the commemoration in front of the National Assembly on11 July (right) Figure 3 The Suva Reka commemoration on 26 March 2016 Figure 4 The street action on 26 March 2019 in Belgrade Figure 5 Tweets by Dušan Mašić on 17 April 2015 (left), and on 18 April 2015 (right)with the hashtag #sedamhiljada Figure 6 Graffiti that appeared in Belgrade after the #sedamhiljadacommemorative event was banned Figure 7 The logo designed by Mirko Ilić for the #sedamhiljada campaign Figure 8 Twitter post by YIHR Serbia, 10 December 2017 Figure 9 Image posted on the YIHR Facebook page, showing the #JesteSeDesilohashtag, with text announcing the launch of the War in Serbia website,1 June 2020 Figure 10 A Twitter post marking the 31 May 2017 online #WhiteArmbandDaycommemoration Figure 11 A Twitter post sharing images of the 31 May 2017 onsite commemorationof White Armband Day in Prijedor, Bosnia and Herzegovina, using the Figure 12 Drawing by Midhat Kapetanović of Vučko, Zagi, and the Pobednik (leftto right), posted on Instagram on 11 July 2020