Die Robert‐Rössle‐Straße in Berlin‐Pankow. Zum Streit um die ehrende Erinnerung an einen „relativ belasteten“ Pathologen in der NS‐Zeit

Abstract

AbstractFor some years now, there has been a dispute in Berlin Pankow about renaming the “Robert‐Rössle‐Straße.” The pathologist is accused of an opportunistic attitude regarding his behaviour and his scientific work under National Socialism. In his research, especially that on a “pathology of the family,” Robert Rössle is said to have followed the racial‐hygienic paradigm of the Nazi era. He is to have used questionable methods and is subject to the reproach of having profited from his adaptation to the system scientifically and as a private citizen. The dispute over the naming of the street can be described as “dissonant memory,” impeding a harmonious culture of remembrance. It is suggested that this dispute – regardless of whether the street is renamed or not – be used productively in the sense of a reflexive historical consciousness to get on Rössle's track and illuminate the factual and personal entanglements of his network from different perspectives.