So German!

Announcing University of Ottawa research project “‘Children of the Enemy’: Narrative Constructions of Identity Following Wartime Rape and Transgenerational Trauma in Post-WWII Germany and Post-Conflict Bosnia”

Main investigator of this project funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada is Prof. Agatha Schwartz, University of Ottawa. Co-investigators are Prof. Mythili Rajiva and Prof. Christabelle Sethna (University of Ottawa), and Prof. Tatjana Takševa (St. Mary’s University, Halifax).

The purpose of our project is to collect and analyse information and stories about the consequences of the mass rape of German women in the last days and aftermath of World War II and the rapes and forced impregnation of mainly Muslim Bosnian women in Bosnia-Herzegovina during the 1990s war in former Yugoslavia. We seek to understand how these two episodes of mass rape affected the women, their mothering practices and how their experiences may have been passed down to the next generation(s), the children born of the rapes. Our aim is to highlight the possible effects on the children and–in the German case–grandchildren of the women survivors, but also to consider the often overlooked forms of agency of the women survivors and the children themselves. Given more recent episodes of mass rape in armed conflicts worldwide, discussing and bringing to light these issues is of great importance.

If you or a family member have experienced sexual violence in World War II and you would like to participate in our study in a safe, anonymous environment, we would very much appreciate your contribution.

As a small token of our appreciation of your time and effort, we offer all participants a compensation in the amount of $30.

Contact: Prof. Agatha Schwartz by e-mail agathas@uottawa.ca or by phone 613-562-5800 #7635

The ethical aspects of this project have been approved by the Research Ethics Boards of the University of Ottawa and Saint Mary’s University.