Memories in transit: Circulations, contestations and transformations

We live in an era of intense mobility driven by migrations, natural disasters, the climate crisis, technological advancement, globalization, war, hunger and forced displacement. This mobility shapes contemporary societies, setting in motion memories that circulate in oral, gestural, sonic, sensory, textual, material and digital forms. How much of the past is carried during these displacements? What is left behind? How do past events take shape in our accelerated present? To what extent are they transformed? In what ways are the experiences of previous generations passed on and modified by younger ones? How do refugees and migrants carry memories and heritage with them? How are these memories often marginalized or silenced in host countries, leading to struggles for recognition? How do we talk about truth in an era of fake news and artificial intelligence? ‘Memories in transit’ captures the subjective, fluid quality of memory as an experience, as well as its temporality. This idea is concerned with the paths followed by people, mnemonic narratives and practices, examining their transmission across generations and borders, and their role within diasporas and social struggles. It involves analysing the repertoires and archives through which memories circulate and converge, as well as the silences that envelop them. Memories are in a state of constant transformation and circulation, moving not only among people, places and generations but also generating competing historical interpretations of events. As a sensitizing notion, it raises critical questions about the past that remains potent, about events that persist in the present, intertwine with new phenomena and, in some cases, fuel new cycles of violence and the dispossession of rights to truth and justice.

This special issue also connects to a central problem in transitional justice politics: the place of memory in building democracy and reconstructing institutions in post-war societies. When all memories are brought to light – including those of perpetrators and individuals who are not ‘perfect victims’ – a difficult question emerges: Are we prepared to listen to those memories as well? How can we situate those memories in tension with or in opposition to hegemonic narratives? The fluidity of memory also speaks to its ‘comebacks’, such as Argentina’s ‘Never Again’ slogan, which gained relevance in the quest for truth and justice and has since been adopted by struggles around the globe. Yet, it seems insufficient to stop the emergence of populist far-right or extreme right-wing regimes. How can we understand current populist, fascist and authoritarian tendencies through the lens of memory studies? How are we to understand these comebacks and apparent repetitions of history?