Reparatory History
One space for hope lies in the potential for the digital-spatial humanities to become a terrain for reparatory (or reparative) work. Our use of this term draws on feminist historian Catherine Hall’s (2018) writing on “doing reparatory history.” Drawing on her research on the histories of ‘race’, gender, class, and the slavery business in Britain, Hall invites humanities scholars to consider how – or whether – critical historical writing in the context can contribute to broader discussion of reparation as a process the converges theory and practice (or “praxis). These processes of repair are situated in and vary across place, and involve re-orienting historical inquiry to more critically examine the roots, rather than only the sites or objects, of harm. They also involve deeper reflection of responsibility by the people who have inherited and continue to benefit from “gross inequalities” of, for example, slavery and colonialism (Hall, 2018), which should also mobilize action, as we discuss later.
It is important to pause here and offer a reminder that calling something reparatory, or reconciliatory, does not necessarily make it so. Reparatory historical work might lead to reparations (in the sense of compensation) or other forms of redress, repatriation, or decolonization, but it cannot only be defined by individual events or outcomes. Indeed, reparatory research is a process that involves ongoing practices; it is never truly final. One example is Indigenous-settler relations in Canada, which has most notably been documented through the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (2015). The term “reconciliation” is perhaps one extension of a reparatory approach, but it is important to note, as many Indigenous scholars, activists, elders, and community members have pointed out, that reconciliation is not possible without acknowledgement of the prior word – truth. To repair something first requires acknowledging truth of a damaged relationship, including harm, struggle, and uncomfortable histories. Although this process has occurred in some spaces across Canada, it has not been fulfilled to a point where reconciliation, as a reparatory approach, feels within reach.
Reparatory thinking also goes beyond the exposing of harmful action, as Hall explains,
Reparatory history must be about more than identifying wrongdoers and seeking redress: it begins with the descendants, with trauma and loss, but the hope is that the work of mourning can be linked to hopes for reconciliation, the repair of relations damaged by historical injustice (2018: 12)
As we gather from Hall’s words, the hope that lies in reparatory approaches does not exist purely as a positive or joyful form, nor does it necessarily produce any concrete conclusion of something being “fixed.” Rather, it involves creating space for different layers of emotion, including mourning and anger, as well as multi-layered stories, identities, experiences, and knowledges that have previously be