Recovering Memory is Regaining Dignity: Collective Memory and Migration in France
Résumé
Immigration never ceases questioning and reconstructing social memory. In today’s France, the commemoration of immigration memory follows shifts in larger discussions pertaining to collective identity. One cannot say any longer that such memories are denied or hidden. However, they have opened spaces for partial, fragmented, and sometimes conflicting representations, which demonstrate how difficult it is to express different dimensions of the past, as perceived by the individual, the community, the nation. However, this is after all proof that a discussion is underway. This form of collective memory is a work in progress and it manifests itself in the actions of different actors in society. These multi-dimensional perspectives on the past always express a means of belonging together in the present and commonly facing the future.