Legacies of Trauma

In this lecture, Dr. Henry “Hank” Knight will focus on the concept of “historical trauma,” the cumulative emotional harm experienced by an individual or a generation due to a traumatic event, even if they themselves did not experience the event. The Holocaust and other genocides provide an opportunity to examine the lasting legacy of trauma on entire groups for generations beyond the tragedy itself. 

This lecture is presented in conjunction with the exhibit Fafnir Adamites: Interfere (with). Adamites’ work largely focuses on intergenerational trauma and the emotional turmoil inherited from past generations. Her feltmaking, weaving, and papermaking act as a meditation to work through past traumas.

Dr. Knight retired in May 2019 after 12 years at Keene State College, where he directed the Cohen Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies and was recognized as the 2018 Distinguished Teacher of the Year. He is co-chair of the biennial Steven S. Weinstein Holocaust Symposium, which he and Leonard Grob co-founded in 1996, and he serves on the Church Relations Committee of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. Knight earned his B.A. in English from the University of Alabama and his M.Div. and D.Min. degrees from Emory University. 

ADMISSION: Free