The Historian Between the Living and the Dead; Between the North and the South

Abstract

The Battle of Algiers, more accurately referred to by historians as “the great repression of Algiers” (Gilbert Meynier), has become a landmark event, symbolizing, for part of the world, the Algerian War of Independence. Together with my colleague Fabrice Riceputi, I am conducting a collaborative historical project on enforced disappearances during the Battle of Algiers. On the project’s website, we have created a page for each identified abductee and issued a call for families to confirm the fate of each individual. Since then, we have been contacted by dozens of families: sometimes they send us photos of the individuals, provide written testimonies, or share preserved documents. In our work as contemporary historians, we take on roles that are not always inherent to our discipline. Put differently, we push the boundaries of our field, navigating between the living and the dead. This is the focus of this article.