Professor of modern European cultural and intellectual history at Yale University spoke about the horrors of the totalitarian regimes that existed in Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union. In the example of this, the concepts of “responsibility”, “guilt” and “innocence” were revealed.
Also, during the lecture, the situation in Ukraine was mentioned, where the speaker, using her example, showed how people, not relying on the analysis of historical events, stop living in the present, but are constantly looking for options for shifting responsibility. The constant discussion of responsibility for the past does not allow us to find and prevent the emergence of reasons for a peaceful life in the present.
Marci Shore shared her experience of participating in debates between Russian and German representatives on the topic of guilt in the history of the 20th century. During the question-and-answer session, Ms Shore mentioned: “We must think about the reasons for the emergence of fascism and Stalinism in order to prevent their occurrence in the future, and not constantly argue and shift responsibility on each other”.
The lecture was attended by a large number of guests from EHU as well as representatives of the Belarusian and Russian civil society and various civil initiatives.
The open lecture was organized with the support and friendship of Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung Belarus.
