Monuments Decolonized: Algeria鈥檚 French Colonial Heritage: A Book Talk
“Statuomania” overtook Algeria beginning in the nineteenth century as the French affinity for monuments placed thousands of war memorials across its French colony (1830-1962). Following Algeria’s hard-fought independence in 1962, colonial monuments took on different meanings. Some were “repatriated” to France, legally or clandestinely while others were preserved in an independent Algeria. Today, in both Algeria and France, people are moving and removing, vandalizing, and preserving this contested, yet shared monumental heritage.
Professor Susan Slyomovics, UCLA
Susan Slyomovics is Distinguished Professor of Anthropology and Near Eastern Languages & Cultures at UCLA. She is the author of books and articles on the topics of reparations, anthropology of art, and cultural and material heritage of the Middle East and North Africa.