ABSTRACT
The interest in the connection between memory and democracy has been central to the memory boom in the social sciences and humanities. However, exactly what kind of relationship we are interested in when discussing these terms together is often far from clear. This introductory chapter proposes that democratic theory can shed light on central normative questions that emerge when memory activism challenges the political and epistemic authority of state actors, experts, or curators from “below.” Based on the inherent tension characteristic of the modern political imaginary, which balances ideas of the liberal tradition with the values and aspirations of the democratic tradition, it suggests that memory can be evoked by activists as a defense of diversity and pluralism, but also, at times, as a unifying factor in the mobilization of civil society and the activation of a popular will.
