... participation in the conflict on the side of the colonial metropoles helped strengthen emerging national consciousness, even though the war itself was largely perceived as “someone else’s conflict.”
Iran and Turkey: An Uncomfortable Past
In Iran’s historical memory, the country’s involvement in the Second World War occupies an inherently ambiguous place. The war is viewed negatively, shaped by the trauma of Iran’s semi-colonial status in the nineteenth century, when the country was divided ...
... London. It would have been surprising if Victory Column (nicknamed Goldelse by Berliners) had been erected in Paris, Vienna, or Copenhagen rather than Berlin. The Great Victory of 1945 is a valid reason to be proud for any Russian who has not lost their historical memory and their sense of national identity. Whatever happened next, this remains our celebration, our triumph, and our truth!
Why is it, then, that each time I remember June 22, I get goosebumps as my hands involuntarily clench into fists ...
... war, at least not through personal experience. And neither do the military officials who surround them. In fact, the majority of people living on the planet today do not have direct memory of the Second World War. This is where universal and national historical memory should come in to save the day.
That lasting peace does not come about by itself was understood not only by philosophers, and not only during Kant’s time. The mass movements in dozens of countries (including the United States,...
