Holocaust Remembrance Day lands on Jan. 27, the same month and day Auschwitz, one of the largest and deadliest Nazi death camps, was liberated. The day recognizes all lives lost in the Holocaust both Jewish and other minorities of Nazi Germany.
The United Nations hosted an official commemoration, where Holocaust survivor Avraham Roet, 94, shared her important story of loss and survival. The commemoration was webcasted on UNTV and UN Geneva’s Facebook page.
The Holocaust was a genocide of mostly Jews across Europe during World War II. The Holocaust had a death total of around 11 million, 6 million being Jews and around 5 million others. The genocide was carried out by the Nazi Party who believed Jews were inferior or subhuman.
Remembrance and commemoration days like these are so vitally important because, “We must ensure that current and future generations learn the history and lessons of and from the Holocaust, so they feel a responsibility to stand up to injustice and take action against atrocities wherever they occur,” said Antony J. Blinken, U.S. Secretary of State.
On and around the remembrance, students in Spring Lake High School English classes have been reading Holocaust literature. In English 9B, students read and compared Art Spiegelman’s graphic novel, Maus, and the Diary of Anne Frank, while seniors read Ellie Weisel’s account of his survival, Night.
Mr. Alex Sinn, whose 9th grade students recently wrapped up the Holocaust literature unit, said, “The themes of dehumanization and the world witnessing atrocities remain relevant for students to think about. We can apply our understanding of the forces that led to the Holocaust to many contexts in our world today.”
Mrs. Jessica Beebe, a teacher for 12th grade English said, “We are reading Night by Eli Wiesel. Reading it has been really impactful for students to see how awful the holocaust really was and it shows how important it is that as humans we never let it happen again.”
Mr. Ben Huitema, a history teacher for 9th grade students said, “ The Holocaust was the most devastating event in world history and it’s important to teach it so it will never happen again.”
To watch the testimony given by Avraham Roet https://youtu.be/V-ba3gZsAJY.
