Populism, Common Sense, and the Memory of Difficult Heritages in Georgia and Croatia

• In Event: Memories of Water, Land, and Belonging in Georgia

Abstract

In this talk, I examine the contested memories of the Gulag in Georgia through a comparative analysis of the Foibe in Istria. I explore how these difficult heritages in two borderland regions are understood through populist discourses and self-evident truths. I ask whether analyzing the contested memories of the Gulag and the Foibe in terms of post-imperial legacies (the Russian Empire and the Austrian Empire) can shed new light on the ramifications of populist discourses and the manipulation of the past for political ends.

Author

• Laura Mafizzoli, Inst of Ethnology CAS (Czech Republic)