reparations

In addition to trials of perpetrators, reparation for victims of genocide, slavery, and other systematic mass violence and oppression has emerged as the key means of attaining justice. Reparation has, in fact, become the only avenue in cases where most direct perpetrators and victims are no long living, but where the consequences of an instance of mass violence, a system of slavery, etc., continue to have a significant impact in the present. Yet, attempts to ensure long-term justice are often set aside for the claimed interest of promoting peace and positive future change. This occurs frequently with support from progressives. This panel will examine general theoretical complexities at the core of reparations, including questions of who speaks for a group on long-term justice issues. It will also consider the historical and contemporary political, legal, ethical, and cultural dimensions of various reparations cases, such as indigenous North, Central, and South Americans, African Americans, South Africans, Armenians, Palestinians, Kurds, the Comfort Women, and survivors of the Holocaust, with stress on the commonalities of these cases and the growing “global reparations movement” that is taking shape, as distinct groups pursuing reparations join together around a broader goal of social justice and transformation.