The Guilt of Nations Quotes

“[T]he new international emphasis on morality has been characterized not only by accusing other countries of human rights abuses but also by self-examination. The leaders of the policies of a new internationalism — Clinton, Blair, Chirac, and Schröder — all have previously apologized and repented for gross historical crimes in their own countries and for policies that ignored human rights. These actions did not wipe the slate clean, nor [...] were they a total novelty or unprecedented. Yet the dramatic shift produced a new scale: Moral issues came to dominate public attention and political issues and displayed the willingness of nations to embrace their own guilt. This national self-reflexivity is the new guilt of nations [xvii].”
― Elazar Barkan, The Guilt of Nations: Restitution and Negotiating Historical Injustices