The guilt of nations - Barkan

Since the end of World War II, the victims of historical injustices and crimes against humanity have increasingly turned to restitution, financial and otherwise, as a means of remedying past suffering. This study offers a sweeping look at the idea of restitution and its impact on the concept of human rights and the practise of both national and international politics. Through in-depth explorations of reparation demands for a wide variety of past wrongs - the Holocaust; Japanese enslavement of "comfort women" in Korea and the Philippines; the internment of Japanese Americans after Pearl Harbor; German art in Russian museums and Nazi gold in Swiss banks; the oppression of indigenous peoples in Australia, New Zealand, the US mainland, and Hawaii; and the enduring legacy of slavery and institutional racism among African Americans - the author confronts the difficulties in determining victims and assigning blame in the aftermath of such events, understanding what might justly be restored through restitutions, and assessing how these morally and politically charged acknowledgements of guilt can redefine national histories and identities.