Douglass Hansen, Memories of My Dad, June 2026
As remembered by Aminatou Sali, June 2026
As remembered by Basil Anthony Abia, June 2026
As remembered by Douglas Hansen (son)
November 2, 2026
Dear friends,
Hello from The Hague! I hope that this email finds you well, and that you and your loved ones are happy and healthy.
I am writing to update you about the funeral arrangements for my dad, which are finally coming into focus now that the nearly kafkaesque mysteries of securing an American "Consular Report of a Death Abroad" have been answered, more-or-less, and his cremated remains have been brought to their two final resting places in Kaiserslautern, Germany and Yola, Nigeria.
The German funeral will take place on Monday, 28 December at the "Ruheforst" in Kaiserslautern. In effect, dad will be buried under a tree. I hope that his remains will nurture the tree and, in turn, that it will give him a good vantage of the revolution yet to come. I know I cite this too often, but I still stand in amazement at the epochs dad straddled. He was born into a pre-atomic world, without transistors and ignorant of DNA. He could also connect to an even older, more horrible world through the woman he took to vote who was born a slave in the US (still, perhaps, the most inconceivable thing I can imagine).
He left a world on the brink of new totalitarianisms, heatwaves and horrors, both organic and synthetic, developments he (rightly) could not conceive. I hope that a kinder and more just system has started to take root in this world already, despite everything. I trust that if a boy from Cincinnati can grow up to fight for the dignity and liberty of others, can put up a rainbow flag on his office door, can learn about and love "remote" lands and people, that we can achieve another world too. I miss him dearly. I know many of you do as well.
In any case, please know that you are invited and welcome for the funeral on 28 December. I do hope that you can make it. I will also make sure that a video of some kind is made to share with you.
If you cannot make it, fear not! I will also organize something in Leipzig next year, when it's warmer and the atmosphere more festive.
I hope that this finds almost everyone in dad's life. It's a bit hard to keep on top of different email addresses and connect with everyone, so please do share this with others if you think it's appropriate.
In solidarity,
Doug
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