Never Again
Monday, February 3, 2025
January 27, 2025 marked 80 years since the Allied forces liberated Auschwitz and Birkenau concentration camps. It is a day to mourn the 6 million Jewish victims of the Holocaust as well as millions of other victims of the Nazi regime. Holocaust Remembrance Day is also a way to develop educational programs to prevent future genocides.
U.S. Senators Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and James Lankford (R-OK) have introduced the Holocaust Education and Antisemitism Lessons (HEAL) Act. This legislation will enhance Holocaust education in public schools and raise awareness of educational resources available to communities.
Developmental psychologist Dona Matthews recommends 8 years as the earliest age to begin discussing the Holocaust. I'd like to share one activity that I've used successfully with middle school students. It deals with Allyship.
Allyship is an ongoing process that requires us to use our awareness of other people's struggles to help those who are being treated unfairly. Standing up for marginalized people is a commitment that can be taught to children.
The activity has the students complete a Quadrant Chart separated into 4 sections: Victim (A person harmed, injured or killed as a result of a crime, accident or other evil action); Perpetrator (A person who carries out a harmful, illegal or immoral act); Bystander (A person present but not involved); and Rescuer (A person who saves someone from a dangerous or difficult situation).
Students complete the quadrants based on their own life experiences:
Victim: Describe a time someone's words or actions hurt you and made you feel like a target.
Perpetrator: Describe a time you deliberately said or did something to hurt someone else.
Bystander: Describe a time you did not interrupt an act of prejudice.
Rescuer: Describe a time you interrupted an act of prejudice and became an ally to a potential victim.
After students complete the quadrants, they can journal what they learned about themselves. Some students will share what they learned to the class.
I have visited Auschwitz and Birkenau. They are a chilling realization that unless we teach children the importance of tolerance, respect and inclusion it could happen again.
