In the wake of unthinkable atrocities, it is reasonable to ask how any
population can move on from the experience of genocide. Simply
remembering the past can, in the shadow of mass death, be
retraumatizing. So how can such momentous events be memorialized in a
way that is productive and even healing for survivors? Genocide
memorials tell a story about the past, preserve evidence of the violence
that occurred, and provide emotional support to survivors. But the goal
of amplifying survivors' voices can fade amid larger narratives
entrenched in political motivations.
In After Genocide, Nicole Fox investigates the ways memorials can
shape the experiences of survivors decades after mass violence has
ended. She examines how memorializations can both heal and hurt,
especially when they fail to represent all genders, ethnicities, and
classes of those afflicted. Drawing on extensive interviews with
Rwandans, Fox reveals their relationships to these spaces and uncovers
those voices silenced by the dominant narrative--arguing that the
erasure of such stories is an act of violence itself. The book probes
the ongoing question of how to fit survivors in to the dominant
narrative of healing and importantly demonstrates how memorials can
shape possibilities for growth, national cohesion, reconciliation, and
hope for the future.
