Sites of Conscience as Sites of Protest: How Victims Use Place to Advance Their Claims

Abstract

Sites of mass trauma, or “sites of conscience,” have symbolic power that makes them ideal locations for honoring the people who suffered there, educating about history, and advocating for human rights. This article argues that sites of conscience can also be resources for victimized groups because these sites are places, not just spaces, and therefore hold authenticity, symbolism, and moral power. It further argues that, when victims have a personal connection to places of trauma, this connection amplifies the effectiveness and strengthens the framing of protests held there by people who were victimized at the site. With the example of German Sinti and Roma in the late 1970s–early 1980s, I show how using sites of conscience as a resource for protests enabled Romani Germans to frame their claims in a way that attracted more attention and support than they otherwise garnered. Ultimately, I demonstrate that when victims use the sites of their own victimization as resources for protest, they are more likely to advance their rights claims than if they protest at less symbolically meaningful locations.