Martyrdom & resistance, March/April 2019

AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR YAD VASHEM MARTYRDO SISTANC s. m°KLIB*A, «Sg* Vol. 45-No. 4 ISSN 0892-1571 March/April 2019-Adar/Nissan 5779 SURVIVAL, COURAGE AND RESILIENCE The Education Department of the American Society for Yad Vashem and the Young Leadership Associates held our 21st Annual Professional Development Conference on Holocaust Education on March 24, 2019. Our theme this year was Survival, Courage and Resilience: Lessons from Parkland. This year’s program provided an opportunity for educators to consider the legacy of Holocaust education, pay tribute to the victims and lost communi¬ ties, recognize the resilience and strength of Holocaust survivors, and transmit the lessons of this event to present and future generations. Included in these considerations are the question of the relevancy of this event and how to sustain this relevance to our students with substance and meaning. The conference’s impact continues to be effective and dramatic: over its 20-year history, the conference, through its thousands of participants, has touched more than 100,000 stu¬ dents. In 2019, over 180 educators attended the conference, which was organized by Dr. Marlene Warshawski Yahalom, director of education of the ASYV. The conference represents a collaborative effort between the ASYV, the Association of Teachers of Social Studies of the UFT, the Educators’ Chapter of the UFT Jewish Heritage Committee, and the School of Education of Manhattanville College. For the conference and its other educational works, the American Society received the 2015 President’s Award for its contributions to social studies education nationally. The award commends the American Society for implementing best educa¬ tional practices in using documents, inquiry, critical thinking and action for studying the Holocaust. The Conference is named in memory of Barbara Gutfreund Arfa, z’/, a long-standing supporter of the American Society. It is generously sponsored by the Barbara Gutfreund Arfa Endowment Fund for Holocaust Education, which was created by Harvey Arfa and Caroline and Morris Massel as a tribute to Barbara Arfa’s commitment to Holocaust education. The keynote speakers at the 2019 Conference were Eyal Kaminka, PhD, and Ivy D. Schamis, MEd. Dr. Eyal Kaminka, director of the International School for Holocaust Studies at Yad Vashem, strongly represented the work of Yad Vashem in education and its efforts to give the victims back a name, a face and a life story that was taken away from them. He illuminated the value of educating current and future generations using technology, and the need to reform existing edu¬ cational methods so that students can better understand the complexities of the Holocaust. Ms. Schamis is a Holocaust educa¬ tor at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, and a survivor and witness to the events that took place at that school in February 2018. She shared her thoughts on connections between the Holocaust and the tragic events at Parkland in February 2018, and how our responsibility as educators includes teaching our students to become model citizens and advo¬ cates for social justice, and instilling values to emphasize their ultimate responsibilities as people. Other speakers were Ron Meier, the executive director of the ASYV; Caroline Massel, Executive Board member of Yad Vashem; and Carolyn Herbst, the past president/chair of the ATSS/UFT. Ron Meier spoke about the Arfa Conference coming of age in its 21st year. Caroline Arfa Massel shared touch¬ ing and poignant remarks about her mother Barbara, z”l, and how the Conference has evolved to sustain Barbara’s vision of Holocaust remem¬ brance through education. Carolyn Herbst gave greetings on behalf of the ATSS/UFT, and presented a thoughtful discussion of her own con¬ nections between the events at Squirrel Hill in Pittsburgh, the events at Parkland and the Holocaust. She emphasized how we must learn from history and inspire our audiences to be proactive to ensure the lessons of the Holocaust are instilled in our lives, r. Marlene W. Yahalom, director of education of the ASYV, opened the program and remarked how the charge before us in Holocaust education is to convey the impossible and the unimaginable events that took place. Our aim is to empower students and educators to draw meaningful lessons from these events and to think about various per¬ spectives on the Holocaust that other¬ wise might go unnoticed. She briefly reviewed the educational strategy developed by Yad Vashem to study the Holocaust, and its connection to Yad Vashem as an institution, to lay the groundwork for today’s speakers and workshop moderators. The program also showcased the traveling exhibit, “No Child’s Play.” This exhibit was developed, curated and authenticated by Yad Vashem, and starkly portrays the experiences of children during the Holocaust — their coping, resilience, tragedies and survival during the Holocaust. The exhibit opens a window into the world of children during the Shoah. It focus¬ es on toys, games, artwork, diaries and poems, highlighting some of the personal stories of the children and providing a glimpse into their lives during the Holocaust. The exhibition tells the story of survival — the strug¬ gle of these children to hold on to life. Our annual conference aims to enrich educators with additional knowl¬ edge, resources and perspectives about the Holocaust and how to bring these important messages to the classroom. The legacy of the Holocaust is acutely relevant to under¬ standing the resurgence of anti- Semitism and related issues that sig¬ nal us to be aware and diligent to strongly address these matters and collectively work toward “putting out the flames” of hatred, bigotry and intol¬ erance to differences. In conclusion, it is not enough to learn from history or to simply remem¬ ber an event. It is imperative to chal¬ lenge, debate, discuss and teach so this event remains a contemporary issue. (See photo highlights on page 8) IN THIS ISSUE French Jew risked her life spying against the Jewish survivors in Poland and Israel remem The final testimony. azis in World War II . 2 er homecoming . 4 . 5 Stateless: when Germany deported thousands! °f Polish Jews . 6 “Fear is a luxury I could not afford” . 7 Photo highlights from the ASYV YLA winter c^ala . 9 In the shadow of death: the revival of the Jerusalem of Lithuania . 10 Unlocking the mystery of Polish diplomats who rescued Jews . 11 Why the U.S. bombed Auschwitz, but didn’t save the Jews . 12 Forgotten Holocaust history found in Dutch countryside home . 14 Eyal Kaminka, PhD, director of the International School for Holocaust Studies at Yad Vashem; Marlene W. Yahalom, PhD, director of education, ASYV; Caroline Massel, Executive Board mem¬ ber, ASYV.