Philosophy Speaker Series

Friday, November 11

Time: 3:00 - 4:30 p.m.

Location: P327

Speaker: Dr. Jennifer Epp, Huron College

Telling in the Aftermath (Or Not)

Is it ever morally acceptable for people in post-generations (descendants of survivors) not to tell others what they know about a past atrocity? On one hand, there may be a right to truth or a duty to tell that suggests that telling is required. On the other hand, telling may cause harm and there is a presumption of agency on the part of descendants that suggests that they may permissibly choose not to tell. To address this question, I engage with four sources of insight: Susan Brison’s account of healing from trauma via bearing witness (2002); writing on transgenerational trauma in second, third, and fourth generations post-atrocity (Aarons and Berger, 2017; Chivers, 2021; Hepworth, 2019; Hirsch, 2012; Kuester and Michael, 2017; Enns, 2016); Sue Campbell’s account of relational remembering (2014); and indigenous feminist thought on story-telling and survival/resurgence (Tallbear, 2016; Koostachin, 2018). I will not fully answer my question. Instead, I offer an outline of good remembering for those, like me, who are trying to decide what, if anything, to say.