Six Million Voices’ Post

ref Jewish Voice for Peace Yom HaShoah, Holocaust remembrance Day, marks the Holocaust and honors the 17 million people murdered during Nazi Germany’s genocide, including 6 million Jews. This year, this day of remembrance falls on the day the Israeli military ordered the over 100,000 Palestinians sheltering in east Rafah to flee, but with nowhere to go. The decision to assault Rafah on this day is grotesque. The parallels between the dehumanization and persecution of Jews during the Holocaust, and the ongoing US-backed cataclysm in Gaza, where Palestinians are enduring the Israeli government’s genocide, are too stark to be denied. We know our remembrance is hollow if we cannot apply the lessons of our past to the present day. The experiences of our ancestors’ persecution and mass death under fascism now serve as the foundation for how we define modern genocides. As Jews, we recognize the Israeli government’s tactics of dehumanization, intentional starvation and mass slaughter of Palestinians from the atrocities committed by Nazi Germany in the Holocaust, all too often against our own ancestors. Many of us grew up on the images of emaciated people, starved in ghettos and concentration camps. Today’s images from Gaza are a rattling echo. We remain steadfast in our commitment to resisting oppression and advocating for justice in Palestine. Never again means never again for anyone. As Jews, as we continue to witness and struggle against the Israeli government’s oppression of Palestinians, we also recognize exactly where these ongoing atrocities will lead, and we do everything we can to stop that outcome. Our beliefs, our history and our duty demand we stand up to stop the Israeli military’s genocide of Palestinians before it escalates even further. We invoke our ancestors as we affirm our commitment to ensuring that their values of solidarity, collective liberation, and anti-imperialism are carried on into the future as we fight for justice in Palestine.

When Should You Teach Students About Genocide? April is Genocide Awareness Month. Elementary School - Avoid direct instruction about Genocide. However, lessons on kindness can introduce students to the importance of living/working together in pluralistic societies. Middle School - Lessons dealing with genocide can be introduced but I would still avoid discussing explicit/specific details of atrocities. Start to discuss the early stages of genocide - isolation of the "other", hate language, etc. High School - I taught in a law/public safety magnet high school where we studied human rights issues. I did not censor information. I would often have survivors speak to my students which is also appropriate in ES/MS when/if survivors are practised speakers and know how to modify their presentations for different audiences. Work with survivor speaker bureaus to find these individuals. This is important as less experienced speakers/survivors might be more easily triggered by their trauma. This may still happen - my students were very good in helping survivors/visitors to our classroom when this occurred. I also provided trigger warnings in advance, to students, and excused students from certain discussions. Check out United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Guidelines for Teaching About the Holocaust below. https://lnkd.in/ez-TEmMn Also, I hope you will listen to my recent #HaveaLifeTeaching podcast conversation with Jacqueline Murekatete - founder of the Genocide Survivors Foundation (GSF) which will be published tmorrow, Tuesday, April 9th at 5am EST. https://lnkd.in/dZcnYwUc How and when do you teach your students about Genocide? #teachingandlearning #genocideawareness #Holocaust United States Holocaust Memorial Museum; Facing History & Ourselves; Southern Poverty Law Center; Simon Wiesenthal Center; Anti-Defamation League

How to foster more inclusive Holocaust remembrance? On June 7th, we held an insightful workshop in Munich on Muslim belonging and Holocaust remembrance. Prof. Esra Özyürek's book "Subcontractors of Guilt" was valuable for the discussions. Check our blog post for more details. 𝗪𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗳𝗼𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗛𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 👇 https://lnkd.in/d6cTGsmq

Yesterday was the 80th anniversary of Smokey the Bear. Incidentally, it was also Holocaust Remembrance Day. What do they have in common? Both are meant to warn the world about fires. And the world right now is definitely on fire. Maybe that’s the problem with Holocaust Remembrance Day. It’s just one day, when we really need to be vigilant everyday against the evils of terrorism, political, cultural, and academic institutional decay, persecution of any social group, the long-smoldering chaos of far-left ideologies or far right conspiracy theories like replacement, or the religious extremist intentions of Iran and its proxies to take down the west. All of these have been happening over decades. My favorite line since 10.7 is still Jim Gaffigan’s tweet, “Does anyone else feel the need to call all their Jewish friends and say, “Okay, you weren’t being paranoid.”? We weren’t. We’ve been saying to you Never Again a long time for a reason. Yet we’ve all been so accepting of a constant, historic #antisemitism, that this is just how it is for Jews, that the outrage just wasn’t there, by Jews and non alike. Though #Neveragain always felt more aimed at Non-Jews. After all, (sorry not sorry) Non-Jews are the ones persecuting us. Again. So again, the world Jewish population being about 15 million, and Israel being the size of New Jersey and virtually alone politically, we could use a little more help. For Jews, every day since 10.7 has been Holocaust Remembrance Day. That’s why every day it needs to be remembered that evil is possible, that we need to stand by our brothers and sisters, that hateful ideologies and threats of annihilating a people should be taken seriously, that anti-semitism is racism, that we are all capable of moral courage, that we all have a stake in the world and a voice to do something about it, that it isn’t too late. After all, remembering the Holocaust is less about remembering the dead, but standing by the living. If we blink, the moral pillars of the West can easily catch fire and fall. They haven’t burned down yet. But the match is lit, and it will take all of us to put it out.

During The Olga Lengyel Institute for Holocaust Studies and Human Rights's webinar on ‘Confronting Holocaust Distortion and Antisemitism’, the IHRA’s Senior Program Officer of the Global Task Force, David Deutsch, International Program Director at TOLI, Oana Nestian-Sandu and historian and chief editor of the Israel Times, Laurence Weinbaum emphasized that Holocaust denial and distortion have become widespread and dangerous, constituting an affront to victims and a distortion of historical facts. This rhetoric has infiltrated mainstream public discourse and proliferated on social media, contributing to a concerning surge in global antisemitism in recent months. It is imperative to counteract these attempts to rewrite history and perpetuate falsehoods, by promoting accurate Holocaust remembrance and education. The IHRA’s strategy is to counter Holocaust distortion and denial by securing the historical record of the Holocaust. When asked what can be done to counter Holocaust distortion, David and Oana pointed out two complementary efforts. First, social media assets that were created as part of the IHRA’s #ProtectTheFacts campaign, in collaboration with international partners Council of Europe European Commission OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) United Nations and UNESCO. Second, a comprehensive capacity building training program for educators and policymakers to equip them with practical tools to counter distortion “These social media assets would enable us to occupy the public sphere with an accurate narrative and to counter Holocaust distortion in that specific field. The IHRA has built a toolkit that includes these assets, along with an action plan. When educators or students inquire about what steps to take next, I advise them to share these assets strategically and to post it within a context they find impactful,” said David. Access the social media toolkit and join our campaign to #ProtectTheFacts! https://bit.ly/48MqFYm

To read the whole study and understand the dynamics 👇  https://lnkd.in/gT8DfAFY

Are societies inclined towards populist politics more susceptible to Holocaust distortion? A 2023 IHRA Grant Call Winner, the Uniwersytet Warszawski, will organize a nation-wide survey to test how endorsement of populist visions of democracy are linked to the tendency to distort Holocaust history. The survey, which will be conducted across Germany, Austria, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia, aims to gather valuable insights to effectively counter Holocaust distortion in societies where populist attitudes are prevalent. Developing innovative tools to counter Holocaust distortion in various societies is imperative to protecting the Holocaust’s truth. To find out more, visit: https://bit.ly/3TLjadS

On Holocaust Remembrance Day, Dr. Bea Hollander-Goldfein reflects on the echoes of the past and their impact on our world. Join us in honoring the memories of those lost, and read her blog. #HolocaustRemembranceDay #NeverForget #RememberingThePast #HonoringMemories #ReflectAndRemember #ToleranceMatters #HolocaustEducation #HumanRightsMatter #HistoricalReflections #InMemoryOf

The Wave 2.0 - be Laurie. On this holocaust memorial day, I couldn't help but think of the movie "The Wave", where a highschool teacher aims to teach his students what autocracy means de-facto, and experiments how easily group pressure can take over a full community. Things quickly get out of control until hardly anyone demonstrates clear, critical thinking. The movie makes you wonder if it's truly possible to turn young people into fascists or 'simply' brain-washed to a point of no / low return.  2024 reality makes you understand that it is possible and it's very worrying not only for Israel but for any person who values liberty, inclusion and peace. Back to "The Wave" - when the teacher shows the class a documentary about the holocaust, Laurie (image below, IMDb) is emotionally affected by concentration camps footages, and deeply ponders how ordinary people could commit such terrible atrocities - or merely stand by while they occurred. She resists joining The Wave, despite her boyfriend and classmates' pressure and intimidation. Her bright, individual thinking, truth and justice seeking, and courage separate her from her classmates and show the power of a single person's free will in the face of evil. Fast forward to 2024, showing us The Wave 2.0 all over. What is terribly sad is not only that terror proxies are taking over many geographical locations, but that "normative" people have become blind, their thoughts distorted, and the bystander phenomenon - reliving. Where do you stand post October 7th Hamas attack, massacre and kidnapping? Where do you stand when innocent civilians are still held in underground terror tunnels for 7 months?! Where do you stand when students chant 'from the river to the sea' not understanding which river and which sea, demonstrating they either have historical amnesia or are deliberately calling for the destruction of the state of Israel?  Any connection between Hamas and 'freedom fighters' is dilussional, as is any connection to US woke movement. Moving to Europe, the Eurovision's opening festivities in Malmow were inappropriately held on Holocaust Remembrance Day eve. The Israeli team were absent from the event. Just one event and still, were the rest quiet bystanders? There are examples galore worldwide, forcing us to see clearly what is happening in our communities. Please stand on the actively moral side of history - be Laurie. 

As Keir Starmer pushes for a Holocaust Memorial and mandatory Holocaust education, we must question the selective focus on one atrocity while ignoring others. Genocides are not exclusive, and neither should education on them be. David Lammy’s recent dismissal of calling Gaza a genocide reveals a deeper issue: a reluctance to recognise Palestinian suffering as legitimate. This exclusivity in genocide remembrance suggests that some lives and histories matter more than others—a dangerous message for young minds. We need an inclusive approach to genocide education that highlights all atrocities, past and present. Recognising only one narrative risks creating a moral blind spot, allowing similar horrors to go unchallenged. We must petition the U.K. government to expand genocide education beyond a single event, ensuring that all victims of hatred and oppression are remembered. Let’s teach our students the full truth about humanity’s darkest chapters—no selective memory, no hierarchy of suffering.