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Paper short abstract

This paper discusses ethical dilemmas that arose during my research on memory of racial examinations conducted by German anthropologists in occupied Poland. The research required particular caution in order not to expose interlocutors to negative consequences and to avoid escalating memory conflicts

Paper long abstract

The development of radical views in contemporary world narrows the space for mutual dialogue, understanding, and compromise. Conducting research in polarized communities, especially small ones, poses numerous methodological and ethical challenges. These challenges are intensified when the researcher originates from the community under study.

In my presentation, I would like to share problems that arose during my research on the memory of World War II among the inhabitants of Podhale, my home region. The motivation for undertaking this study was the discovery of German collection of Institut für Deutsche Ostarbeit, which contained documents from ethnographic and racial studies conducted by Nazi anthropologists in occupied Podhale. My first steps in the field revealed a number of methodological and ethical dilemmas. The witnesses I found, fearing a return to sensitive events from war period, initially refused to meet with me. Their concerns were not only about dehumanizing racial examination, but also the collaboration of a small group of local residents with occupiers. These reactions made me realize that my research required a special approach: caution and patience in order to earn trust of my interlocutors. This meant that I had to develop appropriate methods for navigating the field, taking into account empathy, care and responsibility. The following issues proved to be particularly important 1) how to collect empirical materials and use them in an anthropological text without exposing interlocutors to negative consequences, and 2) how to navigate the field so as not to escalate existing tensions and conflicts of memory