Lack of Holocaust Education is Fueling Holocaust Denial
The Holocaust is one of the most well documented examples of genocide ever, yet people somehow don’t know that 6 million Jews were murdered with over 5 million people of other marginalized groups combined; such as Soviet POWs, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Homosexuals, Asocials (ie. prostitutes), Romani, the disabled, and more.
Take a second to look back, did you learn that the Nazi Party was formed in 1920 and fully came to power in 1933? Did you learn that most of the Jewish victims came from Eastern Europe, not Germany? Or even that other marginalized groups, like the ones stated above, were targeted by the Reich? If you did, that is amazing; but a lot of people don’t learn this ever. I’m a Jewish 17 year old and I never learned about the Holocaust in a classroom for more than a day or two. I learned everything I know from doing my own research and discussions with relatives.
The Claims Conference took a poll in the United States of Millennials and Gen-Z’s knowledge and distortions, they discovered that fact distortion of the atrocities committed by the Reich is at an all time high. One of the most shocking was that 63% of them didn’t know that 6 million Jews were killed and of that 63%, 36% thought that the number was ‘two million or fewer.’ These numbers are even more shocking because 64% of all polled believe that Holocaust education should be compulsory in school. They want to learn more, or have younger generations learn more, but their education system did not allow for that.
These beliefs are not only factually wrong, but also harmful. By downplaying the true amount of those murdered, you are ignoring the true staggering number of victims and survivors. This ignorance can play a major role in why people commit to anti-semitism, they could truly not believe that what happened during the Holocaust was that bad. Take for example when at the height of COVID protestors put on a yellow star badge to protest vaccine and mask mandates.
Now you might not think that wearing an imitation of the Holocaust’s Star of David is a terrible thing to do, but the reality is that not only does it trivialize what the Jewish people went through but also is attempting to make a connection between current governments and the Nazi Reich. Comparing the mask mandates and other health precautions to the systemic abuse that the Jewish people faced at the hands of the Nazis, erases the true heinousness behind the Reich’s persecution.
Andrea Freedman, CEO of the Jewish Federation of Ottawa, responded to these protests, “It’s a lack of knowledge, it’s a lack of education and it’s a willful ignorance of understanding the complexities of history.” Many protestors put on the badge because the people around them were, not even understanding the meaning behind it. Lack of education led to following the influences of people around them, instead of making a conscious choice.
Not teaching classes or sporadically teaching during a students life about the Holocaust is creating a gap between what actually happened and what lack of education is portraying. A spokesperson for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum stated that only 19 states out of the 52 require a Holocaust education. However, this does not include private schools and there is no one checking to make sure that the teaching is actually done.
Understandably it is difficult for teachers to teach students the subject, there are so many things that come into question. Such as, how much should you censor facts from certain age groups, should we be forcing anybody to discuss trauma literature, and more. Another major question comes into play of how much you can really teach in the span of a class. There are so many events and so much time to cover that you cannot possibly get to it all. I wish I could say that a lesson or two is enough, but it’s not; no student will remember something a teacher might have said for only 45 minutes.
Germany and the United States since 2020 have begun to initiate an open dialogue between the two countries in an effort to lower the rates of Holocaust distortion and denial. They mainly hope to educate the younger generations but also those who were alive through WW2 and who were born in the aftermath of the war.
During one of the open dialogues, Blinked [US Secretary of State], the step-son of a Holocaust survivor stated that, “Holocaust denial and other forms of antisemitism often go hand in hand with homophobia, xenophobia, racism, and other hatred…(and) often a precursor to violence.” This is why education on the topic is important, this is why Blinked and the two countries are creating an open dialogue.
A nationally required lesson plan, that is actually taught, could be an effective way to make sure students receive proper Holocaust education. By putting together a strict lesson plan/class schedule for a teacher, it removes the stress that falls on their shoulders individually to make the topic known. Removing the worries of if the content is appropriate for the age range or what parts are ‘more important’ than others, could make it easier for teachers to present information to their students.
While we wait for the school systems to change, the responsibility for learning about the Holocaust falls not only on the schools and teachers, but on the individual. I hope that after reading this you are compelled to do some of your own research. It doesn’t even need to be in depth, but just enough that you can speak up when you hear or see a distortion of the facts about the Holocaust.
Works Cited:
- Claims Conference. “First-Ever 50-State Survey on Holocaust Knowledge of American Millennials and Gen z Reveals Shocking Results.” Claims Conference, 14 Jan. 2021, https://www.claimscon.org/millennial-study/.
- Claims Conference. “New Survey by Claims Conference Finds Significant Lack of Holocaust Knowledge in the United States.” Claims Conference, 14 Jan. 2021, https://www.claimscon.org/study/.
- Lee, Matthew. “US, Germany Confront Rising Antisemitism, Holocaust Denial.” USA Today, Gannett Satellite Information Network, 24 June 2021, https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2021/06/24/us-germany-confront-antisemitism-holocaust-denial/5332985001/.
- “Disgust Growing over Vaccine Protesters’ Holocaust Comparisons | CBC News.” CBCnews, CBC/Radio Canada, 15 Sept. 2021, https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/vaccine-protesters-holocaust-comparisons-1.6175321.
