Neglecting Objects of Cultural and Historical Importance as a Form of Structural Violence against the Cultural Memory

Novaković, Nevena (2024) Neglecting Objects of Cultural and Historical Importance as a Form of Structural Violence against the Cultural Memory. In: Društvo i strukturno nasilje. University of Belgrade - Faculty of Philosophy, Institute of Social Sciences, Belgrade, pp. 42-43. ISBN 978-86-6427-336-7

Text Knjiga apstrakata - Drustvo i strukturno nasilje (NBS-web).pdf - Published Version Available under License Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives. Download (785kB)

Abstract

We are witnesses to the long-standing systemic structural neglect of objects of cultural and historical importance by the authorities in Serbia. The most recent example, the sale of the former Military General Staff building, which was bombed in 1999, to the company “Affinity Global Development,” is not only an illustrative case of neglect and destruction of cultural heritage but also of the revision of collective memory. The situation with the Military General Staff building is exceptional because it triggered not only a public reaction but also the resignation of director of the Republic Institute for the Protection of Monuments. Every tangible cultural asset is also a form of cultural communication (Daniel Miller, Edmund Leach), more precisely, a cultural representation of a society. This paper aims to show the consequences of neglecting cultural objects on society as a whole. Violence, as the dominant form of communication in Serbian political system, has spread in a capillary and (in)visible manner throughout all structures of power, making it not only personal and class-based but also cultural. At this point, one can talk about a particular type of conformism and even a form of cultural autochauvinism, caused by attempts to cater to external political, but primarily economic interests. The topic of structural violence against cultural property, or in Bourdieusian terms, violence and influence of the political field on the cultural field, is of exceptional sociological significance for the local context, as it illustrates dominant geopolitical influences, contextualizes the destruction of history, or “everything that came before,” providing a space for the installation of the policy of “after us, the flood.” In this paper, I will use interviews conducted with cultural workers: in museums, archives, and institutes, with a particular emphasis on the Society of Conservators, which has specifically spoken out on the aforementioned issue. This will depict not only the local context but also universal political mechanisms of totalitarian regimes that impose pressure on culture, history, and memory, and will also define the obstacles that prevent individuals in the structure from acting.

Actions (login required)

View Item