Why Teach Holocaust History?
The history of the Holocaust represents one of the most effective, and most extensively documented, subjects for a pedagogical examination of basic moral issues. A structured inquiry into Holocaust history yields critical lessons for an investigation of human behavior. A study of the Holocaust also addresses one of the central tenets of education in the United States which is to examine what it means to be a responsible citizen. Through a study of the Holocaust, students can come to realize that: • democratic institutions and values are not automatically sustained, but need to be appreciated, nurtured, and protected; • silence and indifference to the suffering of others, or to the infringement of civil rights in any society, can — however, unintentionally — serve to perpetuate the problems; and • the Holocaust was not an accident in history — it occurred because individuals, organizations, and governments made choices which not only legalized discrimination, but which allowed prejud
