On February 2nd, 2023 some 10th grade students visited the Museum of Jewish Heritage-A Living Memorial to the Holocaust in lower Manhattan. They were split up into different groups of about 15 and led around the museum by a tour guide, who talked them through stories from various Holocaust witnesses, teaching them the importance of remembering such events. They looked at propaganda posters, religious artifacts, items owned by Holocaust victims, and more. The tour guides were very knowledgeable on the artifacts on display in the museum and answered any questions the students had to ask. Here’s what a few of the students had to say about the trip:
Cynthia Luna-Marcelino
Last Thursday we attended The Museum of Jewish Heritage, where we learned about what hate can do. We learned that such museums exist to remind the younger generation as well as to ensure such events never repeat themselves. I remember hearing stories of the Holocaust, but seeing the belongings of not only the victims but also the survivors made it so real to me. Out of all the belongings, I vividly remember the belongings of a child. In their suitcase, they only had a small teddy bear and a pencil case that contained a pencil and a sharpener. This stuck with me because I would probably also pick these things and a picture of my family to take with me. Attending the exhibition opened my eyes to how horrible the Jews were treated as well as how they could have felt during this period. It also made me realize the importance of sharing what happened to make sure no human has to experience anything similar to it.
Amari Clyde
The trip to The Jewish Heritage Museum-A Living Memorial to the Holocaust was very informative and enjoyable. The way that the Nazis systematically got people to hate Jewish people gave me a new perspective on the Holocaust. My impression of it was that one day people just started to attack Jewish people and that the hatred towards them eventually led to the Holocaust. The entire Holocaust represents the best and worst of people and that’s the main reason why I enjoyed learning more about it. The worst obviously being the Nazis, who show how far hatred can go and why people should speak out when they see hateful ideologies being spread. It also shows the best of people because of how many people put themselves in danger to fight against Nazi rule. Learning about the different people who stood against the Nazis made me realize that the situation was not completely hopeless.
Amina Clyde
On Wednesday we went on a group trip to the Museum of Jewish Heritage to see their newest exhibit titled “The Holocaust: What Hate Can Do”.
In this exhibit we learned about the roots of antisemitism dating back to before the Holocaust. Most of the antisemitism occurred from the difference in region. False truths led Christians to believe Jewish people killed Christ and harmed children for their blood. Antisemitism was so normalized that caricatures of Jewish people would be put on postcards. These caricatures could be found in media as well. Disney was a heavy offender of using Jewish stereotypes and undertones in villains in an effort of making them look evil or scary.
After this portion of the exhibit, we walked through the second part that showed the beginnings of antisemitism in Germany. At first Jewish people were only told to leave the country and emigrate elsewhere. While some did, most thought it was made by hateful Germans and that staying there would just lead to more verbal discrimination.
Post World War One, the Germans needed a scapegoat as to why Germany was declining. The economy suffered from hyperinflation due to all the money the country had to pay to the winning side of the war. That scapegoat unfortunately became the already hated Jewish race along with the disabled, black Germans, Roma, and homosexuals.
The thing that caught my attention the most was the survivors of the Holocaust. It is important to mourn and acknowledge those who have been killed during the Holocaust; however, it is just as important to acknowledge those who have survived. It’s under the same wave of thinking that all black people were enslaved. Part of remembering the atrocities before us is to show those who have survived. It sends a false narrative to continuing mentioning only the dead and giving the illusion that no one fought back.
Many children evaded the effects of the Holocaust when Britain accepted 10,000 children and helped them emigrate out of the country. Several hundred of them went to Holland, France, Belgium, Sweden, Switzerland and 1,000 went to the U.S. Eva Holzer and her family emigrated once the family obtained enough visas. Dr. Seligman Baer Bamberger avoided being arrested the night of Kristallnacht when he went to save the Torah from being burned. He and his family eventually emigrated out of the country as well. There are many stories like this, those who emigrated before Kristallnacht, men that came back from the war and left with their families, children who emigrated, Jewish people whoi fled into the forest and many other things.
I found it interesting to learn about the long lasting roots of antisemitism and how the idea of the “perfect race” along with propaganda, can cause a chain reaction of all these horrible things. I also didn’t know the degree to which they were killing Jewish people and how many people’s families were separated. I always knew it was bad but not that bad. Also, I only knew that Jewish people were killed and not other races or people.
The trip was very informative and I can now say I’ve been there twice. I think the exhibit was an excellent way of showing all parts of the Holocaust and the closing video really put the theme of the exhibit into perspective for me. That it’s important to know what hate can lead to and we should never forget the atrocities committed to all the victims of the Holocaust, no matter how long ago it will be soon.
George Pinto
Last Thursday’s trip was truly an enlightening experience. I learned so much about the Holocaust and really got to see what survivors had to go through to be here today. The museum did a wonderful job of showing individual experiences, as opposed to just an overall sequence of events. There were items there that victims brought to concentration camps, some of them were for religious purposes, and others sentimental. It shocked me how real these people were, of course I knew they were real before, but hearing someone’s first hand story made them feel like more than just a number.
Along with this they had propaganda posters, German-Jewish passports with stamps identifying them as such, concentration camp uniforms, and other ways the Nazis attempted to dehumanize Jews. I never realized quite the extent the Nazis went to strip people of their identity and separate them from the rest of the world.
I have a lot more sympathy for victims of the Holocaust now, and I definitely feel like I have a better understanding of the events and everything that led up to them. Along with this, I’ve learnt the importance of listening to survivors, and stopping hate, so we don’t repeat the past.
Oscar Ixcamparij
The trip to the Holocaust museum was very intense and interesting. All the exhibits provided important information towards the Holocaust event. It really showed how someone’s hatred affects other people. As we continued viewing more of the displays the feeling of pity intensified. For example, they showed the bullets the soldiers used to shoot the Jews. This made me feel sorrowful. Another example was the exhibition that had children’s books, posters, and postcards that were making fun of Jewish people. This showed how hatred towards someone can be spread even to children. They also showed items Jewish people would take like clothing, pans, religious items, and children toys. They believed that they were being moved to a different place when in reality they were moving them to concentration camps where they were killed. All the Jewish people struggled to survive; they moved to other countries or hid in peoples houses. All that to escape the hatred others had towards them.
Learning about this is crucial because it teaches that hatred can have an affect on people. It shows the extent someone’s actions can have on people. It will also teach us that violence isn’t the answer as it won’t help anyone.