Negotiating Racial Politics in the Family: Transnational Histories Touched by National Socialism and Apartheid by Barbara Henkes (review).

"Negotiating Racial Politics in the Family: Transnational Histories Touched by National Socialism and Apartheid" by Barbara Henkes explores the intersections between family kinship ties, race politics, and racism. The book examines the production of ignorance and the complexities of white families during National Socialism in Germany and apartheid in South Africa. Through the analysis of egodocuments such as oral accounts, private letters, and memoirs, Henkes constructs mini-biographical sections that highlight the tensions between personal and political loyalties in times of extreme racism and persecution. The book offers six intimate migration histories that shed light on the complexities and vulnerabilities of individuals and families in the face of violent and racist regimes. Henkes argues that understanding the production of whiteness and white supremacy requires a nuanced analysis that considers the multidirectional memory and historical specificities of each context. [Extracted from the article]