Holocaust to Humanist
Halina Wagowska is a Holocaust survivor and a Humanist. She is also the author of an autobiography, The Testimony, published in 2012. Halina has been a human rights activist for decades. Geoff Allshorn spoke to her about her experiences leading from Holocaust to Humanism.
By Geoff Allshorn
Surviving the Holocaust
In the labour camp, my parents insisted that I eat part of their meagre food ration because I was growing fast. That enhanced my chances of survival and diminished theirs. Prolonged incarceration combined with danger and the unpredictability of each next moment, required adjustments and survival mechanisms. Mine was to regress to a primitive state where all my tiny wits were focused entirely on the precise moment, interpreting sounds, silences and movements, all in terms of approaching danger. Rather like a small creature in the undergrowth of a jungle full of predators. I was too young to see the ‘big picture’ or to reflect, which would have kept me off guard. I believe that gave me an advantage over those whose high intellect did not allow for such regression.
My most powerful memories of the Holocaust are the death of my mother in my arms in Stutthof. Loading bodies brought from the gas chambers into crematoria ovens in Auschwitz-Birkenau. Being beaten, kicked, and spat upon.
The Holocaust shaped me and our world
Prolonged deprivation (5 years 9 months) of any aesthetic experiences makes me appreciate and cherish art, music, books, theatre, and the beauty of nature, as great enrichments of life. It shaped my values and attitudes, and it narrowed my focus onto issues, problems and behaviours that inflict pain and harm such as child abuse, racism, homophobia, bullying, social injustice, inequality of opportunity.
The world said, ‘Never again’ and proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was a major civilising step.
What have we learnt from the Holocaust?
We learned that prejudices can have gruesome consequences.
Speaking out on behalf of the disadvantaged is my way of justifying my existence
Perhaps not surprisingly, I identify with persecuted minorities: people of colour, indigenous people, LGBT people, the Untouchables (Dalits). Speaking out against oppression and injustice is the least I can do.
“Speaking out against oppression and injustice is the least I can do.”
I wrote the book (The Testimony by Halina Wagowska) to meet an obligation. In the camps, we kept saying that if we survive, we shall have to testify until we die. Friends insisted that as all my previous testifying is in the archives of research bodies, there should be a public record. Hence the book.
Although the book is a testimony to the horrors of the Holocaust, it is also a testimony to the positivity and determination of subsequent life
I recall my mother towards the end of the war, worrying about whether I would be normal if I survive. After the war, the notion of being normal transformed itself into not remaining a victim. In the book, I try to show that with determination, it is possible to lead a normal life after a catastrophe.
Becoming a Humanist
I was born in Poland to parents who were agnostic and of Jewish origin. The all-powerful Polish Catholic church pervaded all aspects of personal life, institutions and social structures. It preached a very harsh, divisive and punitive religion. Hence my passion for secularism. Years later, my training in science reinforced my preference for evidence-based facts. My values and attitudes had many aspects of Humanism without me qualifying them as such. I joined the Humanist Society of Victoria when I became aware of its existence.
To me, Humanism offers a vision of a better, fairer world. I am not sure how we can abolish evil. Humanism meets my needs and passion for secularism, rational, ethical approach to problems, for the protection of human rights and dignity, for democracy, for social justice and equity and for social action through group lobbying. What I find attractive in Humanism is its fostering of altruism, of goodness for its own sake, and the taking of total responsibility for one’s actions.
“To me, Humanism offers a vision of a better, fairer world.”
My greatest achievements
I need to be useful. Lobbying and working to improve the lives of others seems worthwhile. With other members of the Humanist Society of Victoria I looked after homeless students; provided books for bushfire victims; helped to ‘adopt’ a village of Untouchables in India to help them up from their imposed quagmire. I am in a group to raise funds for bursaries for Aboriginal students.
The greatest human rights challenges of our time
The climate emergency, if left unattended, will make life hazardous for the next generation, and cause the extinction of many species. We need to heed scientific advice on climate, and we need to foster democratic governance, social justice, and equality. Beware also the growing economic divide between rich and poor.
My message for future generations
Learn of past evils and say NEVER AGAIN. Check your prejudices.
In this one life we have, let us work to make this a better world.
Originally published on Humanist Blog by Geoff Allshorn as From Holocaust to Humanist
