holocaust awareness week?

excuse me? It needs a week?
how the frick does that event need a whole week so that people are aware of it? Its one of the largest population executions of all time and we need a week to be aware of it? What exactly are we coming to as a society when we dont already have this even engrained in our souls?

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/Holocaust-recalled-with-week-of-events-43271657.html

Sorry, I cannot partake in this awareness week!
It is way too painful to me!
My Uncle's whole family was killed in Poland, and he never ever talked about it!
It really bothers me, deep inside that this could happen, did happen!

it bothers me too... As I would hope it bothers 100% of Canadians.. do we really need an "Awareness week"? A week of remembrance maybe

never forget

I was not aware of this awareness week!

I am aware of the Holocaust thought!

Unfortunately most schools do not spend enough time on this and that is partially why the awareness week has been created so that it is not only in the schools but also out in the public. If you have children in the school system today ask them what they have been taught about this atrocity.

I do have kids (twins in grade 5 right now) and I distinctly remember talking with them about it this year as part of their school work. They were well enough informed for their age.

As they get older I fully expect them to be made aware of other aspects of it.

I am hearing rumours about some of our youth not having an inkling about the Holocaust. Then there are the deniers out there.

Where is the harm in an awareness week? What's the big deal?

Thats what I am trying to find out GOM.. why a week is needed.

I believe the Holocaust was not taught in detail when I was in grade school.
The school system has failed most of us with regards to this tragic historical horror.
So, how did you become aware of the Holocaust in greater detail, even before the Internet was around?
For me, it was through the media, ie documentaries, books and from talking to other people. Sort of the same way I learned about a lot of things that were not taught in deail in school, like Canada's WWI participation.

okay am I like that old or something? I was taught all about this stuff in school. Was there actually a period in our education system where they did not teach this and now it has come back again?

And one more tidbit of information (and this is not intended to insult anyone) but today is the anniversary of the birth of Adolf Hitler and that is another reason Holocaust week is this week. The only reason I know this fact is my husband's birthday is also today. He is 1st generation Canadian of German heritage and when he was born his grandmother was not pleased that it was April 20th. His grandfather spent time in a concentration camp during the war so our children were always aware of the Holocaust from family but as far as schools, it is touched on very briefly if at all. This is something that every family should take upon themselves to educate their children about and not leave it up to the schools to do. I remeber when I was in University doing my Bachelor of Education, we were instructed on how to teach about the holocaust and it is very sanitized and non descript. We were instructed that we had to be unbiased in our teachings and that movies that were one sided were not to be shown. For example Schindler's List is one that is not to be shown to high school students because it is one sided and graphic in nature but the Story of Anne Frank is ok because it does not depict the mass atrocities so clearly. And because of this most teachers now do not teach it.

And one other thing to think about DeanK, the teachers coming out of University now are too young (born in the 1980's) to even remember the Vietnam war let alone WWII so how would it be relevant to them if they know nothing about it.

So I grew up in some magical time where they told the truth to kids and held nothing back? I dont really buy that fact. My kids are being given the same information I was given so was there some sort of grey period in the last 20 year where they decided to NOT teach stuff.. then they gave their head a shake and are teaching it again?

Perhaps it could be that people just ignore the information when they are taught it in school because it is to tragic for them to grasp?

How can a movie depicting actual events be called biased? More politically correct garbage.....maybe the kids oughtta watch The Producers instead.....

Deank is it possible other schools, school divisions and teachers handle it differently? Is that not all the more reason for a Holocaust awareness week?

Triniman wrote:I believe the Holocaust was not taught in detail when I was in grade school.
The school system has failed most of us with regards to this tragic historical horror.
So, how did you become aware of the Holocaust in greater detail, even before the Internet was around?
For me, it was through the media, ie documentaries, books and from talking to other people. Sort of the same way I learned about a lot of things that were not taught in deail in school, like Canada's WWI participation.

I became aware of the Shoah because of ignorant little mennonite scheisekopfs.....calling me a dirty jew and telling me we all should have burned....i ran home crying, I was nine, my father took me to Eatons book section and bought a bunch of books on the subject.....years later the Shoah was to become my main focus at university.....funny how the mennos would ask the dumbest questions like how did they figure out who was jewish? Me and my buddy Coco Cohen started laffing and i stood up and shouted you pull their effing pants dow!!!!

The prof could not stop laffing...

Holocaust rembrance day perhaps. Week of awareness, I dont see how its THAT important of an event on our collective souls to insist on a week of awareness. There have been events just as tragic or worse, recently and in our past that the world stood by and did/does nothing about to focus a WEEK on the holocaust. Maybe we should focus time on the stuff that is happening now instead.

never forget

we have one lousy day for our soldiers... hell most people dont even care about that one day. We have nothing for the people of China.

So what? I still don't see the big deal.

GOM we cant both use the same arguement for and against the idea.

Unhh, pardon? I'm actually ambivalent. One day? Fine by me? One week? Also fine by me. Just as long as we make an effort to not forget.

My point is what is the big deal? Why do you even care if it is a week?

If you want to lobby for a week of remembrance for our soldiers I'll support that too.

with all the atrocities that have gone on and are still going on in the world, what makes the holocaust so special?
hitler was one tyrant among the hundreds of thousands that have walked or still walk the earth, WW2 was one of the hundreds of thousands of wars that have plagued and still plague the world.

i'm all for learning it as part of history and knowing that it happened, and it was a terrible piece of history, but history is what it is.

how about an awareness week for atrocities in general? teach people about some of the other crises that have happened this century or are ongoing right now.

maybe make some actual difference in the current world instead of living in the past with one single event among many.

Deank, we have one day called Remebrance Day to remember all of the lost soldiers but that is prescribed by the government, what about all of the days when the soldiers are repatriated down the Highway of Heros? Do you ever have your children sit and watch those ceremonies? There are more days now than there has been because of the nature of the news and internet service. And in my opinion, a week for the holocaust is not enough, if we have Black History Month why not a whole month for the Holocaust? And if you don't like the way the present system is teaching your children about it, do it yourself!!!!
What I was taught in public school and university is so very different and watered down to what my family has shown and told me.

It is not about making it "special". It is what it is. The people most directly affected by it believe it is necessary. If someone else has been affected by something just as heinous and want to take a week to remember it who are we to question it?

If you want to create an "atrocity" remembrance week go for it. Too bad we don't have a museum for these kind of things...