This past Thursday was Holocaust Remembrance Day, which honors the millions who died during World War II in Nazi-dominated Eastern Europe. My grandmother is a Holocaust survivor who endured the hardships of World War II. She grew up in a small town in Poland and was able to survive the war in hiding. Her Jewish identity made her susceptible to Nazi prejudice and persecution. Her formal education ended when she was only seven years old, for Nazis installed many restrictions on Jews, one of which forbade Jewish children from continuing in public school. Eventually, Jews were transported and sent to concentration camps.
Though my grandmother avoided the degree of horror endured in concentration camps, her experience in hiding was not easy. She had been taken in by a Catholic farmer and his wife, agreeing to be a farmhand in return for food and shelter. For a time, my grandmother gave up her Jewish identity in order to survive and took on the persona of a Catholic child, instead. While she was able to return to Jewish belief and find a community after the war, my grandmother ultimately lost her parents, siblings, and many other relatives.
In Hebrew, Holocaust Remembrance Day is known as “Yom HaShoah.” The term “shoah” translates to mean "destruction," and appropriately relates the struggle and loss endured by victims of Nazi persecution. The Nazis not only destroyed the lives of many Jewish people, but also persecuted gypsies, homosexuals, the disabled, and those of African or Asian descent. Their acts represent the ultimate terror that can result from racism and intolerance.
Unfortunately, these issues remain present in society, today. Many countries around the world still limit religious freedom. Perhaps, the most well-known offenders include China, Iran, and North Korea. A recent article from the Washington Times, entitled Religious Freedom Under Sustained Assault Around the World, Report Finds, notes the increasingly pervasive limitations set on religious freedom. The article explains that the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, in its annual report, highlighted the need for the State Department to extend its supervision of religious intolerance to less prominent countries. Religious intolerance in countries, such as Nigeria and Syria, has become more worrisome in recent years, yet the State Department hasn't formally recognized the escalating distress.
By identifying and being mindful of those in distress, we take the first step in helping those people. Though Holocaust Remembrance Day is mainly observed by Jewish people, it’s an appropriate opportunity for anyone to ponder the repercussions of discrimination. We can never forget the genocides of our past if we seek to create a more cohesive and peaceful future.
