Rasa Čepaitienė, Memory Politis in a Multiethnic City: the case of Vilnius

Abstract

In the article, the concepts that have influenced (and are still influencing) the appreciation, assimilation and usage of the collective memory, evidenced in historic Lithuanian towns, especially Vilnius, are analysed, and some possible solutions to the questions arising are proposed. It is emphasized that the recognition, usage and interpretation of cultural values, accumulated in the public spaces of historic towns, which are, as a rule, multiethnic, multiconfessional and multicultural, is a complex undertaking requiring competence,creativity and responsibility. The relationship between this multipartite problem and the cultural politics of modern Lithuania is examined. Two attitudes, monoperspective (imperial, Soviet, nationalistic) and multi-perspective (postmodern), towards the relationship between ethnic communities and the prevailing culture are distinguished. The clearest cases of public space appropriation/ interpretation which provoked inter-ethnic or intersectional conflicts in recent times are analysed. These are related to the sensitivity of the collective memory, which is linked to the traumas and wrongs of the recent past.