In Glendale, World War II Isn’t Over
A Southern California City’s Memorial to Korean ‘Comfort Women’ Raises Questions of Responsibility, Memory, and Human Suffering
A federal judge will soon decide whether to remove a memorial in Glendale, California to so-called Korean “comfort women” who were forced into sexual slavery by Japanese soldiers in World War II. The case—and the controversy that created it—serves as a reminder that the legacies of war are contested and that the pursuit of virtuous public memories of war will inevitably clash with personal tales of anguish.
When it comes to brutal acts of history, desires to remember are inevitably challenged by cravings to forget. No nation or group wants to …
