Koloniales Erbe und deutsche Erinnerungskultur: Die Restitutionsdebatte und ihre Fortläufer in deutschen Medien (2018–2020)

The question of possible restitution of art and cultural assets that were brought to Europe during the colonial era has been the focus of increasing public interest in Germany in recent years. In this country, the discussion, commonly referred to as the restitution debate, is closely linked to the public controversy surrounding the Humboldt Forum in Berlin, where non-European art and cultural objects from the collections of the Ethnological Museum and the Asian Art Museum of the State Museums in Berlin will be exhibited. On the one hand, this essay outlines the basic features of the German restitution debate as it has been played out in the media over the past three years and sheds light on the specifics of the debate, who is involved in it, and how some fundamental aspects are discussed in detail. On the other hand, the essay aims to the long-term development of this media discussion and its relationship to the public controversy surrounding the intellectual Achille Mbembe, which flared up in 2020 and in the context of which it became clear what some of the voices involved in the restitution debate pointed out early on: It is not just about the handling and the whereabouts of individual objects, but about Germany’s and Europe’s general approach to their colonial past. [restitution, (German) colonialism, (German) remembrance culture, Humboldt Forum, media analysis]