Abstract

VALERO PIE, Aurelia  and  RABOTNIKOF, Nora. What to Do with the Past? Time, Memory and History in Contemporary Debates in Mexico around the Statue of Christopher Columbus. Hist. graf [online]. 2023, n.60, pp.73-108.  Epub Feb 13, 2023. ISSN 1405-0927.  https://doi.org/10.48102/hyg.vi60.445.

In this article we reflect upon different modes of temporal experience in our days, and we explore the interpretative import of the notion of ‘practical past’ and its distinction from the ‘historical past’ (Michael Oakeshott and Hayden White). To this effect, we analyze different ways of dealing with the past, or the multiple pasts, from the point of view of memory and heritage discourse, and, more specifically, we take as example the building and removal of historical monuments in Mexico City. In the context of what has been called ‘transnational memory’, we examine the debates surrounding the statue of Christopher Columbus on a new anniversary: the logics of commemoration, the forms of protest in the public space, and the government initiatives concerning urban order. We conclude with a critical review of presentism as a way of dealing with the past and living in the present.

Keywords : practical past; historical past; heritage; monuments; memory; canon; presentism.