Sites of tension of memory of the Holocaust in Poland in the context of tendencies in contemporary Europe

Many researchers, among them Jacques Le Goff, have stressed the significance of memory of the past as a determinant in the struggle for power and in creating collective identities. This text evolved on the basis of qualitative studies undertaken in 2019‒2022 within the framework of the international research project “Sites of Tension: Shifts in Holocaust Memory in Relation to Antisemitism and Political Contestation in Europe” carried out by the University of Haifa in cooperation with five research teams from Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain, Hungary, and Poland. The aim of the study, in which the author participated, was to examine contemporary tensions and conflicts related to memory of the Holocaust on the basis of analysis of political discourse, social media, and interviews with teachers. The text seeks answers to research questions about affinities and divergences between selected states, about recently emerging patterns in teaching about the Holocaust in the context of increasing historical politics in Poland, and about resistance to education programmes imposed by the authorities. The cases from the five selected European countries indicate how memory of the Holocaust serves expression of political attitudes and social identities.