Lessons from the Holocaust applicable to today’s world
NICK CODDINGTON
A parent of one of my high school history students recently asked me a pointed question: “Why do you spend so much time studying the Holocaust in a course designed to teach about 20th-century world history?”
Recently Pope Benedict XVI wrote a letter to bishops worldwide to explain the church’s much-criticized handling of the case of a Holocaust-denying bishop. Clearly this is an appropriate time to address this parent’s question and evaluate the significance of how teaching about the Holocaust links the past to today.
As a history teacher and former advisor to the NATO commander, I have gained an appreciation of how historical periods are connected to the present and what different governments learn from each other. With this background, I have sought to help my students assess the past and have the courage to influence the future.
It has been my experience that nations seldom change. Margaret Mead said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”
This is the reason I challenge my students to learn about and understand the Holocaust. Only by understanding what has happened before us can we predict the actions of future governments and regimes. When we can do this, we can create a more tolerant and socially just world.
I have seen that when students understand the Holocaust, they become better citizens. I believe learning about the Holocaust gives them perspective.
Hitler noticed that the world turned its back on the Armenians in 1915. In the summer of 1938, he observed the global indifference of the plight of the German Jews at the Evian Conference, and this signaled to him an opportunity to step up his persecution of the Jews and turn against them without the fear of reprisal in the event we now refer to as Kristallnacht – two days in 1938 when Nazi policies of discrimination turned to extreme violence.
So, why is studying the Holocaust today important? One only has to look at the events unfolding in Congo to answer this question.
As we watch the re-emergence of the Hutu-Tutsi conflict in Congo, we are left to wonder why this is happening. Is it an isolated set of events, or is it somehow linked to the past?
As a teacher, it is my responsibility to help students make those connections, if they exist.
Just as the world ignored and turned its back on the Jews in 1938, both at Evian and during Kristallnacht, in recent years the world has turned its back on those in Somalia, Rwanda, Darfur and Congo. It is not by chance that the events in Congo are exploding. Congo’s government has observed global indifference in Africa and believes that no Western nation has either the political will or the moral determination to protect even the most basic of human rights.
The United States government seldom goes beyond rhetoric when our national security is not at stake. The political debate on leaving Iraq seldom considers the safety and security of those in the country, but rather focuses on how much money the war is costing taxpayers. We must ask ourselves, is this the framework our children should use when deciding to intervene in global events?
We study the Holocaust at Charles Wright Academy not only because it is worthy of our attention, but because it teaches us about current events. We use it as a framework to enable students to become better citizens. We teach about the Holocaust because by doing so, students learn to recognize intolerance, respect differences, celebrate justice and become involved.
Simon Wiesenathal said, “Hope survives when people remember.” If this is true, then by studying the Holocaust and remembering Kristallnacht, we are creating hope for the world one student at a time.
Nick Coddington lives in Olympia and teaches high school history at Charles Wright Academy in Tacoma. He graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point and holds master’s degrees from the Joint Military Intelligence College, St. Martin’s College and the University of Illinois. In 2007, he was honored as the National Holocaust Educator of the Year for his work creating a unique curriculum on 20th-century genocides. In 2008 he received the Spirit of Anne Frank Award.
