Between Dissonance and Convergence: The Dynamics of Interactions Between Vernacular and Official (Non-) Memories of the Mass Murder of Germans by Poles in Nieszawa

Nieszawa, which is situated in northern Poland, is unique in the history of Polish-German relations. In 1945 local Polish militiamen murdered a group of German civilians there. In 2000, after decades of public silence about this crime, the leaders of the local community decided to commemorate the victims. In this article, the mutual influence of three kinds of (non-)memory of the crime-national official, local official, and vernacular- are analyzed. In conclusion, some of the factors are identified that make members of a group that mistreated “Others” accept the truth about the event and acknowledge the need to discuss it publicly.