Ep. 42: Psychological Dimensions: The Long Shadow of the Perpetrators (Alexandra Senfft – Author & Journalist)

Guest: Alexandra Senfft – Author; co-chair of the Working Group on the intergenerational Legacies of the Holocaust Hosts: Efe & Philip Bio: Alexandra Senfft is a German publicist, Middle East expert, and political author. She studied Islamic studies and worked as a non-partisan Middle East adviser for the Green Party in the Bundestag, later serving as UNRWA observer in the West Bank and spokesperson in Gaza until 1991. Senfft has worked extensively in Israel as a journalist and expert, served on the board of the German-Israeli Working Group for Peace in the Middle East, and collaborated with Israeli psychologist Dan Bar-On in the Storytelling in Conflict program, bringing descendants of Holocaust victims and perpetrators into dialogue, later extended to Israelis and Palestinians. Her books include Schweigen tut weh (2007, Silence Hurts), Zwischen Antisemitismus und Islamophobie (2012, Between Antisemitism and Islamophobia), Der lange Schatten der Täter (2015, The Long Shadow of the Perpetrator), and Onkel Pauls Geigenbogen (2019, Great Uncle Paul’s Violin Bow). She is co-chair of the Working Group on the intergenerational Legacies of the Holocaust and a board member of the Dachau Memorial and the Friends of the Parents Circle – Families Forum, Germany. In this episode: Efe and Philip speak with Alexandra Senfft about the long shadow of the Nazi era and intergenerational trauma in Germany. Senfft reflects on being the first grandchild of a Nazi perpetrator to publicly confront her family history, exposing the silence and denial shaping many perpetrator families. The conversation explores familial silence, perceptions of responsibility, and societal implications of unaddressed trauma. Senfft discusses her work in Holocaust intergenerational studies, her UNRWA experience in Gaza, lessons from Dan Bar-On’s dialogue-based conflict resolution, and how dialogue between Germans, Israelis, and Palestinians can help address complex inherited trauma. This episode was recorded July 2, 2025. Links: Alexandra Senfft: https://alexandra-senfft.de/ Disclaimer: Guest opinions are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the podcast team. Technical legal terms are explained in Episode 36 with Prof. Claus Kreß; contested histories are addressed by Prof. Gudrun Krämer in Episode 21.