Ehren und Erinnern (re−)konstruieren – ein Kommentar.

The commentary interprets the practices of remembering and the creation of memory as an attempt at academic and public‐media self‐understanding, which exhibit past‐political, present‐oriented and future‐oriented perspectives and intentions. Academic politics of history and remembrance can hardly be imagined without reference to and interaction with the public and politics. The contributions in this special issue make it clear that a large number of public and private actors and interest groups are usually involved in memory policy controversies surrounding academics. When discussing prizes, street names or school names named after academics, for example, very different logics and ideas about remembering and memory often clash. This fundamental dilemma is particularly evident in debates about controversial academics who worked before, during and after the Nazi era.