Silence in the age of transnational memory Recovering political violence in Romanian contemporary debates

The argument in this manuscript intervenes in the broader debate about the limits, biases and exclusions of the global liberal memory paradigm and the narratives that underpin global liberal democracy. Through a close reading of enduring conservative connotations of being 'liberal' and 'European' in Central and Eastern Europe, and specifically in Romania, the research charts how narratives of political violence have been linked to exclusionary dimensions of liberalism (human rights, neoliberalism) on the one hand, and problematic notions of Europeanism on the other. In particular, I mapped conflicts of memory, debates and contests. The analysis focused in particular on narratives of fragility, vulnerability, victimhood and persecution on the one hand, and of hope and transformation on the other, in order to trace how memory began as a mobilizing force, only to become a deterrent to truly progressive liberal notions, and ultimately to contribute to the demise of its myth. The argument builds on a notion of silence that has emerged in relation to the history of the left and social justice movements, critical narratives of knowledge and geopolitics, the mainstreaming of radical rightist thought, or the exclusionary dimensions of the state and law. In turn, the normative approach to political violence offers insights into a long and complex process of unravelling the idealism of liberalism. The analysis weaves together memory studies, intellectual history and political history to provide a cultural genealogy of the pitfalls of liberal memory.