The German Federal Agency for Civic Education (bpb) cordially invites you to the conference “Contested Memories of the Difficult Past. Eastern Europe and Its History of the 20th Century” which will take place in Kyiv/Ukraine from 30 September to 2 October 2016.

The German Wehrmacht invaded Kyiv on 19 September 1941. Barely two weeks later, on 29 and 30 September 1941, SS and SD units, supported by local militia, massacred 33,771 Jews from Kyiv in the ravine of Babyn Jar on the outskirts of Kyiv. In the following months more than 100,000 people were murdered there, including Roma, Soviet prisoners of war, communists and Ukrainian activists. Babyn Jar is a central place of remembrance of the Holocaust in Eastern Europe and the racially motivated policy of extermination pursued by the National Socialist regime. The bpb, together with the Ukrainian Center for Holocaust Studies and other partners, is organising the conference “Contested Memories of the Difficult Past. Eastern Europe and It! s History of the 20th Century” to mark the 75th anniversary of the Babyn Jar massacre.

The conference addresses questions related to victimisation and responsibility, how art and culture are dealing with competing historical narratives, and the influence of the diaspora on practices of remembrance in post-socialist countries. It will also discuss how discourses of remembrance and political decisions influence each other at the local and international level, and how transnational remembrance and genocide research can contribute to a critical view of the past in Eastern Europe.The conference also aims to develop adequate strategies for making younger generations more aware of this topic.

The conference, funded by the Federal Foreign Office of Germany, is part of the programme “Mapping Memories” of the German Federal Agency for Civic Education (www.bpb.de/mapping-memories. Kick-off event: “Mapping Memories of Post-1989 Europe”, Vienna, 29 November - 3 December 2015).

Click here for further information and registration: www.bpb.de/contested-memories

At a glance:

Conference: "Contested Memories of the Difficult Past. Eastern Europe and Its History of the 20th Century"
Date: 30 September - 2 October 2016
Venue: Hotel President, 12, Hospitalna Street, Kyiv, 01023, Ukraine
Conference fee: Travel and accommodation costs will be covered by the bpb
Conference languages: German, English, Ukrainian (simultaneous interpreting will be provided)

We look forward to seeing you in Kyiv!

Yours faithfully,

Daniel Kraft
– Head of Communications –

Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung /
Federal Agency for Civic Education
Adenauerallee 86
53113 Bonn
Tel +49 (0)228 99515-0
Fax +49 (0)228 99515-293
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www.bpb.de