What should we call those who stormed the US Capitol on January 6 of this year? Struggles over possible labels matter: What one calls a certain group has implications for the ways in which one can and will engage with them. The polarization of Americans when it comes to classifying the attacks is indicative of a larger dilemma: how should one respond to the rioters and their demands – and is that even an option?
Author: Eldad Ben Aharon
Dr. Eldad Ben Aharon is a Post-Doctoral Minerva Fellow and Associate Researcher in PRIF’s “Glocal Junctions” research department. He obtained his PhD in history from Royal Holloway University of London in 2019. Dr. Ben Aharon specializes in the diplomatic history of the Middle East during the Cold War. He carries out research on Israel’s and Turkey’s foreign policy and his other main areas of research interest are Holocaust memory, comparative genocide studies, counter-terrorism and theory and practice of oral history.
At the Age of the Pandemic: The Global Memory of the Holocaust and Armenian Genocide at a Crossroads
Over the last forty years, the Holocaust has become a distinct aspect of Western culture and a universal lesson for protection of minorities and human rights. By contrast, the Armenian genocide is still being denied by Turkey and a culture of commemoration which is lagging far behind. Beyond the reason for differences between memory practices, I argue that a stronger culture of commemoration of the Armenian genocide would have twofold benefits.
