Here are a few scattered notes from a seminar entitled, “The Intergenerational Transmission of Trauma: Recovering Humanity; Repairing Generations,” held Saturday, October 5th, at the Law School at the University of Minnesota.

What drew my attention was not only the subject, “transmission of trauma,” a child welfare issue of central importance, but also the auspices of this seminar. The presenter, Jeffery Prager, is a noted Professor of Sociology at UCLA. Moreover, the sponsorship of this event suggested a broad array of perspectives on this topic of “trauma”: The Department of English, University of Minnesota; the Minnesota Psychoanalytic Society and Institute; and co-sponsored by AAPCSW; Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies; Center for Victims of Torture; Human Rights Center; and the Institute for Advanced Studies (IAS).

In addition, one of the organizers of the event was Regents Professor Madelon Sprengnether, a colleague of very long standing.

This is a modest account of questions that are being raised in the continuing exploration of trauma. For this seminar, the origin of trauma was linked to racism, the Holocaust, war, slavery, and the subjugation of tribes.

  • How do we acknowledge the reality and consequences that have been inflicted by these cosmic events? The past endures.
  • How does a parent prepare a child for the “slings and arrows of outrageous fortune”? To be released from anger and rage is the subject of memories and literature. It is also central to therapy. But we know very little about how a parent prepares a child for racism, anti-Semitism, slurs against a religious identity. How does a parent respond to a child’s question: “Tell us what happened?”
  • How do we treat those who harbor “a revenge mentality”?
  • We know very little about how school districts respond to the profound experiences of racism. A review of responses could be useful. Denial? Forgiveness? Continuing rage? Suppression? It should be noted that there are national responses: in South Africa, a Truth and Reconciliation Commission was established; in the U.S.A., a Holocaust Museum was developed. However, there is still a search for a coherent narrative on genocide. The U.S.A. still has not developed a museum on “slavery.”

Two responses are worth noting: The movement toward forgiveness and reconciliation is hopeful. Encouraging empathy is a useful direction.