Holocaust Remembrance:
What's Behind the Campaign?
By Mark WeberSince the late 1970s “Holocaust Remembrance” has become ever more important in the
Across the
Every major American city has at least one Holocaust museum or memorial. Worldwide there are more than 250 Holocaust museums and memorials, most of them in the
The public is continually reminded of Jewish suffering during World War II. Between 1989 and 2003 alone, more than 170 films with Holocaust themes were made. [2] In many American and European schools, and in all Israeli classrooms, a focus on the wartime suffering of Europe's Jews is obligatory. [3]
Yehuda Bauer, a prominent Holocaust specialist who is a professor at
Tim Cole, a history professor and prominent specialist of Holocaust studies, writes in his book Selling the Holocaust: “From a relatively slow start, we have now come to the point where Jewish culture in particular, and Western culture more generally, are saturated with the 'Holocaust’. Indeed, the ‘Holocaust’ has saturated Western culture to such an extent that it appears not only centre stage, but also lurks in the background. This can be seen in the remarkable number of contemporary movies which include the 'Holocaust’ as plot or sub-plot.” [5]
How did the Holocaust come to play such a large role in
Exploiting the Holocaust
What’s behind the Holocaust remembrance campaign? Whose interests does it serve?
It is, of course, fitting and proper to remember victims of genocide, war and oppression. But Holocaust remembrance is not, as its supporters claim, a noble effort motivated by sincere concern for humanity. Instead, this relentless campaign is an expression of Jewish-Zionist power, and is designed to further Jewish-Zionist interests.
On the occasion of the opening of the US Holocaust Memorial Museum on the Mall in
The Holocaust Remembrance campaign encourages sympathy and support for Jews and
Norman Finkelstein, a Jewish scholar who teaches at DePaul University in Chicago, writes in his bestselling book, The Holocaust Industry, that “invoking The Holocaust” is “a ploy to delegitimize all criticism of Jews.” He adds: “By conferring total blamelessness on Jews, the Holocaust dogma immunizes
Paula Hyman, a professor of modern Jewish history at Yale University, has observed: “With regard to
This view is echoed by another Jewish scholar, Tony Judt, who is director of the Remarque Institute at
“The Shoah [Hebrew term for Holocaust] is frequently exploited in
In Israel, says Tom Segev, a prominent Israeli journalist and author, the Holocaust has become “an object of worship.” Moreover, he writes, “the 'heritage of the Holocaust,’ as it is taught in [Israel’s] schools and fostered in national memorial ceremonies, often encourages insular chauvinism and a sense that the Nazi extermination of the Jews justifies any act that seems to contribute to Israel’s security, including the oppression of the population in the territories occupied by Israel in the Six-Day War.” [11]
Amira Hass, an award-winning Israeli journalist and author, is even more blunt. Writing in a leading Israeli daily paper, she says: [12]
"…
The great lesson of the Holocaust, says
No Similar Remembrance of Non-Jews
Non-Jewish victims of genocide, oppression and war do not merit the same consideration as do Jewish victims of the Holocaust. There are no comparable museums, memorials or solemn ceremonies to commemorate, for example, the vastly greater number of victims of Soviet and Chinese Communism.
As historians acknowledge, the non-Jewish victims of Soviet Russian dictator Joseph Stalin greatly outnumber the Jews who perished as a result of Hitler’s policies. Robert Conquest, a prominent scholar of twentieth century Russian history, estimates the number of those who lost their lives as a consequence of Stalin’s policies as “no fewer than 20 million.” [14] Authoritative estimates of the number of Chinese who perished as victims of killings, repression, starvation and forced labor under the Communist regime of Mao Zedong range from about 30 million to more than 60 million. [15]
Americans are trained and encouraged to “know” that six million Jews were murdered by the Nazis in World War II. But few Americans, even well-educated ones, have any idea of how many Russians, Poles, Chinese or even Americans lost their lives in that global conflict. Estimates of the number of Chinese who lost their lives as direct and indirect victims of Japanese aggression and occupation during the 1930s and 1940s range from about ten million to more than twice that number. The Chinese government has put the figure at 35 million. [16]
During the years 1885 through 1908, an estimated five to eight million Africans perished in the
'Holocaust Denial' Laws
In some countries special “Holocaust denial” laws stifle free and objective discussion of the Holocaust issue. In
'God's Chosen'
The Holocaust is often treated with reverence, and as a central event of world history. For many Jews, says Rabbi Michael Goldberg, a Jewish author and religious leader, the “veneration” of the Holocaust has become a new religion. “And as with any organized church,” he adds, “this Holocaust cult has its own tenets of faith, rites, and shrines.” [18]
The Holocaust remembrance campaign reflects an arrogant view of Jews as a special and superior people. Abraham Foxman, head of the Anti-Defamation League -- one of the most influential Zionist groups — has declared: “...The Holocaust is something different. It is a singular event. It is not simply one example of genocide but a near successful attempt on the life of God's chosen children and, thus, on God himself. It is an event that is the antithesis of Creation as recorded in the Bible; and like its direct opposite, which is relived weekly with the Sabbath and yearly with the Torah, it must be remembered from generation to generation.” [19]
Jewish death and suffering do not deserve to be venerated more than the death and suffering of non-Jews. The Holocaust remembrance campaign deserves scorn, not support, because it is a one-sided effort that serves narrow Jewish and Israeli interests and bolsters Jewish-Zionist power.
Notes
1. A. Barkat, “Yad Vashem Was the First, And Now It’s The Latest,” Haaretz (Israel), March 15, 2005
( http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/552062.html ).
2. D. Sterritt, “The one serious subject
3. Peter Novick, The Holocaust in American Life (Boston: 1999), p. 207.
4. Quoted in: David Cesarani, ed., The Final Solution: Origins and Implementation (Routledge, 1994), pp. 305, 306.
5. Tim Cole, Selling the Holocaust (Routledge, 2000), p. 2.
6. P. Novick, The Holocaust in American Life (1999), p. 207. See also pp. 11-12, 208.
7. Melvin Jules Bukiet, “The Museum vs. Memory: The Taming of the Holocaust,” The
8. Norman G. Finkelstein, The Holocaust Industry (Verso, 2003), pp. 37, 52, 149.
9. Paula E. Hyman, “New Debate on the Holocaust,” The New York Times Magazine, Sept. 14, 1980, p. 79.
10. Tony Judt, “Goodbye To All That?,” The Nation (New York), Jan. 3, 2005, p. 17.
11. Tom Segev, The Seventh Million: The Israelis and the Holocaust (New York: 1993), pp. 513, 517.
12. Amira Hass, ”Using the Holocaust to ward off criticism,” Haaretz (Israel), March 16 (or 21?), 2005.
13. Leonard Fein, “Too Young to March?,” Forward (New York), May 13, 2005, p. 8; "Israel marks
"Sharon: Never Forget Nazi Killers,” CNN News, May 6, 2005
(http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/05/05/holocaust.day/ ).
14. R. Conquest, The Great Terror: A Reassessment (Oxford Univ. Press, 1990), p. 48.
15. S. Courtois, and others, The Black Book of Communism (Harvard Univ. Press, 1999), pp. 4, 463-464; D. Southerland, “Repression’s Higher Toll,” The Washington Post, July 17, 1994, pp. A1, A22, A 23; Richard L. Walker, The Human Cost of Communism in China. A study of the Committee on the Judiciary, US Senate (1971).
16. “Dispute over mission stalls Japanese war museum,” The Palm Beach Post, May 21, 1995, p. 22A (from The New York Times); Sam Jameson, “WWII Apology Fails to Find a Voice in
17. Adam Hochschild, “In the Heart of Darkness,” The New York Review of Books, October 6, 2005, pp.
39-42; Adam Hochschild, King Leopold’s Ghost (Houghton Mifflin, 1999); A. Roxburgh, “Belgians Confront Colonial Past,” BBC News, March 9, 2005 ( http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/4332605.stm ).
18. Michael Goldberg , Why Should Jews Survive? : Looking Past the Holocaust Toward a Jewish Future (Oxford Univ. Press, 1996), p. 41.
19. A. Foxman, “Schindler’s List – The Meaning of Spielberg’s Film,” ADL On the Frontline, January 1994, p. 2.
About the Author
Mark Weber is director of the Institute for Historical Review. He studied history at the University of Illinois
(Chicago), the University of Munich, Portland State University and
espero que este comentario llegue al tribunal superior de querétaro: el 19 de noviembre ocurrió un leve incidente de tránsitodel cual mas adelante me enteré que era un sobrino de la jueza penal Bárcenas; éste joven aunque los ajustadores de los seguros me daban la razón, prefirió que se llevaran los vehículos al corralón. Por supuesto que al día siguiente su auto estaba liberado y una semana despues el peritaje a su favor (siendo que para liberar un auto, tarda el tramite 15 días y los peritajes un mes) y como es de imaginar mi expediente ya está consignado a un juez penal que. claro que si para evadir el pago del deducible del seguro que es de $6,000.00, la jueza Barcenas movió sus influencias imaginen que hará para que su sobrino gane el juicio y aparte de pagar los daños quedaré con antecedentes penales solo por tener la desgracia de tener un accidente de tránsito con un pariente de un servidor público, que en lugar de estar juzgando a verdaderos delicuentes y comprometerse con la justicia mueve todo el poder del que es capaz para evitar un pago que además ella no erogará