Georgiy Kasianov: Disturbing Past. Perceptions of the Holocaust in Ukraine: Remembrance, Politics and Society (the Case of Babyn Yar)

The paper presents the history of the formation of the collective memory of the Holocaust in independent Ukraine, highlights the process of recognizing the canonical Holocaust narrative in the official memory policy, considers the complexities of its appropriation as an integral part of the Ukrainian national memory narrative, describes the interaction of collective memory of the Holocaust with other memory narratives, and touches upon issues related to revisionism.
The topic is considered in the context of the interaction of different mnemonic actors: state institutions, non-governmental organizations, political forces, mnemonic activists, and researchers. The theme is illustrated by the case of the commemoration of the Holocaust in Bayn Yar – the central symbol and memory site of the Holocaust in Ukraine. Special attention is paid to various approaches to the artistic and historical ways of commemorating Babyn Yar’s story by different mnemonic actors and to heated public discussions.

Georgiy Kasianov is a professor at Maria Curie Skłodowska University in Lublin, where he heads the Laboratory of International Memory Studies. He previously lectured at research institutes and universities in Kyiv and worked as a visiting scholar in several countries. He researches the history of Ukraine, theories of historiography and nationalism. His main research interests include spatial concepts of memory politics and the instrumentalisation of history. His most recent monograph was Memory Crash: Politics of History in and around Ukraine, 1980s-2010s.

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