Final reflection

Reading the memoir Night by Elie Wiesel and going to the Holocaust Museum to see the real artifacts of the Nazi Genocide was memorable. Visiting the museum impressed me, made me really understand the horror the Jews and other people went through, and tied everything together. A couple nights ago at the dinner table, I learned that some of my distant ancestors on my mother’s side were German Jews killed during the Nazi genocide. I also learned that some of my father’s ancestors were collaborators with the Nazis. Since they were excommunicated by their family and the whole of Dutch society, my grandfather only found out four years ago. Having the opportunity to talk to and hear the stories of a survivor today was unimaginable. I couldn’t seem to wrap my mind around the fact that that woman had been through everything we learned in Night and the movie Life is Beautiful how they tricked kids into taking a shower and then gassed them!That that woman survived all that! Before this, the history of the Holocaust to me was just a story. Now, I found my personal connection to the Holocaust and learned about the people suffering for no cause, some of whom turned out to be my ancestors. I will perceive humanity and history differently because I can now understand that just a small kernel of hatred by a small group of people can grow into a immense horrible nightmare. Hearing the stories from someone first hand really brings it home because it could have been me, it could have been my generation, it could have been my family, and we need to make sure we do not let this happen ever again. As Elie Wiesel said in his Nobel Peace speech, “... that the world did know and remained silent. And that is why I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere. When human lives are endangered, when human dignity is in jeopardy, national borders and sensitivities become irrelevant. Wherever men and women are persecuted because of their race, religion, or political views, that place must—at that moment—become the center of the universe¨ (118-119).  I’ll be thinking about this unit, about Elie Wiesel’s story and about the survivor I met today in some way for the rest of my life.