Subcontractors of Guilt: Holocaust Memory and Muslim Belonging in Postwar Germany

by Esra Özyürek

At the turn of the millennium, Middle Eastern and Muslim Germans had rather unexpectedly become central to the country's Holocaust memory culture—not as welcome participants, but as targets for re-education and reform. Since then, Turkish- and Arab-Germans have been considered as the prime obstacles to German national reconciliation with its Nazi past, a status shared to a lesser degree by Germans from the formerly socialist East Germany. It is for this reason that the German government, German NGOs, and Muslim minority groups have begun to design Holocaust education and anti-Semitism prevention programs specifically tailored for Muslim immigrants and refugees, so that they, too, can learn the lessons of the Holocaust and embrace Germany's most important postwar democratic political values. Based on ethnographic research conducted over a decade, Subcontractors of Guilt explores when, how, and why Muslim Germans have moved to the center of Holocaust memory discussions. Esra Özyürek argues that German society "subcontracts" guilt of the Holocaust to new minority immigrant arrivals, with the false promise of this process leading to inclusion into the German social contract and equality with other members of postwar German society. By focusing on the recently formed but already sizable sector of Muslim-only anti-Semitism and Holocaust education programs, this book explores the paradoxes of postwar German national identity.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Germany, Sociology, Anthropology, Politics, Religion

266 pages, Hardcover

Published April 4, 2023

Reviews

[annika]

read this for the west and the rest fyseminar. actually very interesting topics, if the writing wasn’t so boring.

[elizaveta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Though ethnographic work was done before active pro-Palestinian demonstrations in germany, which were obviously claimed as ‘antisemitic’ because they can not be aligned with an image of ‘true german citizen’; i believe many statements on how to integrate into the society by accepting social contract of guilt is mainly and sadly true (even though only accepting is not enough for the society, you need to prove it and maybe, only maybe then the facecontrol will be passed). And i can imagine even more programs taking place on re-educating those surely muslim background people, who are perceived as ‘a source of nowadays antisemitism’, instead of far-right-wing leaning ethnic germans.

I would give it five stars for the research, but four for the repetiteveness of some passages and minor spelling mistakes.

[Alona · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay yes! Had lots of reflections regarding my time in Germany, particularly the conscription into German citizenship/belonging which rests on the "ritualized regret" for Nazi crimes.

Thesis of the book: "Muslim-only education programs externalize antisemitism onto racialized and migrantized groups who have been living in Germany for generations, thus sub-contracting part of the guilt onto them. By doing so it allows white Germans to move on, but not away, from their seventy five year old guilt, to enjoy a more anodyne German nationalism, and to congratulate themselves for their continuous investment in fighting against antisemitism in Germany and around the world." (21).

This work confirmed my lived critique of progressive German memory culture, especially the desire to implicate Muslim Germans into Germany's antisemitism problem as a means to further racist exclusion of Muslim and Arab Germans and rid white-Germans of their guilt while dismissing concerns of ongoing racism and antisemitism. Angry remembering all the shit I've seen in Germany (particularly one antideustche fucker) but also inspired to create scholarship which academizes the things I'm already noticing, thinking, and feeling.

[Amélie Lapointe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Très juste dans l'ensemble, avec un bémol au niveau du ton : les prises de position de l'autrice sont bien plus audacieuses et intéressantes en introduction que dans le corps de l'ouvrage. L'autrice marche sur des oeufs lorsqu'il est question du rapprochement fallacieux entre antisémitisme et antisionisme. Depuis 2023 nous avons vu les ravages de cette raison d'état en Allemagne, et la criminalisation du support à la Palestine et à la cause Palestinienne. L'illusion d'un "juste milieu" entre un état colonial et une population colonisée est absolument intenable.

[Ayoto Ataraxia · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Subcontractors of Guilt: Holocaust Memory and Muslim Belonging in Postwar Germany" by Esra Özyürek is an essential read that delves deep into the intricacies of Holocaust memory within the context of Germany’s evolving national identity. This book provides an insightful examination of the role Middle Eastern and Muslim Germans play in the narrative of Holocaust remembrance—not merely as participants, but as focal points for initiatives aimed at integrating and educating immigrants on Germany's historical accountability and democratic values.

Özyürek's ethnographic work, spanning over a decade, reveals the complex layers of 'subcontracted' guilt, where Holocaust culpability is implicitly transferred to Germany's Muslim population. This process is scrutinized through the lens of Holocaust education programs specifically designed for Muslim immigrants, highlighting the paradoxes and tensions this engenders within the framework of German national identity.

The book critically explores the construction of this identity, emphasizing how it has become defensively proud yet ideologically burdened by its past. The discussion around the German word "Schuld," meaning guilt, which also connotes crime, sin, moral defect, and a failure of duty, adds a profound layer to the narrative. Özyürek draws a compelling parallel to "debt," pointing out how both concepts share a linguistic and metaphorical similarity that reflects the ongoing transfer and management of historical accountability, akin to a financial instrument.

In today’s socio-political climate, where issues of identity, integration, and historical responsibility are more pressing than ever, "Subcontractors of Guilt" is a timely contribution. It challenges readers to rethink the dynamics of memory and guilt, not as static elements of the past but as active, transferable commodities that shape and are shaped by contemporary society. This book is a crucial resource for anyone looking to understand the deeper ideological constructs of German identity and the role of marginalized communities in the narratives of national reconciliation.

[Silvia Manzano · Rating 4 out of 5]

"At the same time, making Muslims the new focus of the European and German antisemitism prevention campaign shifts the blame to relative newcomers to European society, people who are still commonly called 'foreigners' in Germany. Accusing immigrants, or rather the grandchildren of immigrants, of having imported antisemitism to the continent successfully obscures non-immigrant European and German antisemitism.
These findings suggest that shifting the blame for antisemitism onto Muslim Germans and depicting them as dishonorable and undeserving residents may work well to relieve mainstream Germans of guilt. It also depicts antisemitism as a problem that no longer belongs to Germany but now only exists there due to immigration"
soooo eyeopening omg

[Sven Beck · Rating 5 out of 5]

exactly the book deutsche erinnerungskultur needs right now

[Joanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nuanced and thought-provoking examination of how Holocaust education shapes (or is expected to shape) German Muslims.