Narrative(s) of Return and the Gendered Memory Politics of Post-1989 Transformation: Populist Familism, Catholic Fundamentalism, and Liberal Feminism in Poland

Abstract

This article has two main objectives. First, it proposes an analytical framework for how to explore “narratives of return” as policy proposals and tools of memory politics. Second, it reveals coexisting versions of “return” advocated by three Polish political actors: the populist right-wing Law and Justice party (“Return” to the Nation), Catholic activists (“Return” to Religion), and representatives of liberal feminism (“Return” to Women’s Rights). The case material consists of four policy proposals relating to either family or women’s reproductive rights. The article shows that all analyzed political narratives of return have used some variation of the discourse on victimhood, and all of them mean to terrify and raise fear. The policy proposals draw on Polish collective memory and, specifically, on the politics of memory of the post-1989 transformation.