300 students listen to Robert H. share his story of survival

300 4th and 5th grade students crowded into the Seattle Public Library's Microsoft Auditorium to hear speakers bureau member and Holocaust survivor Robert H. share his story.

All of the students are participating in the Seatle Public Library's Global Reading Challenge. The Global Reading Challenge this year includes the book Vive La Paris, a story about a young African American girl and her witty piano teacher, who is also a Holocaust survivor.

Students came from across Seattle - Orca Elementary, Roxhill Elementary, and Beacon Hill Elementary schools.

Special thanks to Mary Palmer, Children's Librarian and head of the Global Reading Challenge at the Seattle Public Library for her dedication and organization of this great event.

Today is International Holocaust Remembrance Day

International Holocaust Remembrance Day

The United Nations General Assembly Designated January 27th an annual international day of commemoration to honor Holocaust victims. January 27th is the day associated with the liberation of Auschwitz.

To the thousands of survivors who were on the death march out of Auschwitz, this is a controversial day.

Israel and the United States continue to observe Holocaust Remembrance Day on the date assigned on the Hebrew calendar, the 27th of Nissan. (This year, that is April 11, 2010.) Nonetheless, the UN's move is momentous as it urges Member States to develop educational programs to instill the memory of the tragedy in future generations to prevent genocide from occurring again...read UN document.

What about Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom Hashoah) in April?

After the horrors of the Holocaust, Jews wanted a day to memorialize this tragedy. But what day? For two years, the date was debated. Finally, in 1950, compromises and bargaining began. The 27th of Nisan on the Hebrew calendar,* was chosen. This date falls beyond Passover but within the time span of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising.

On April 12, 1951, the Knesset (Israel's parliament) proclaimed Yom Hashoah U'Mered HaGetaot (Holocaust and Ghetto Revolt Remembrance Day) to be the 27th of Nisan. The name was later simplified to Yom Hashoah. This year Holocaust Remembrance Day is on April 11, 2010.

Each year the Holocaust Center organizes the Yom Hashoah: Holocaust Remembrance Day Community Program. This year the program will be on April 11, 2010 at the Stroum Jewish Community Center, Mercer Island. This year's program will include: musical and theatrical performances, a display of student artwork, a memorial service, and a panel of children of Holocaust survivors sharing thoughts and experiences. More information available soon at www.wsherc.org/programs. Free and open to the public.

*The Hebrew calendar is based on the lunar cycle. The months are shorter than those on the solar calendar (the calendar we commonly use), so a date on the Hebrew calendar does not consistently match up with a day on the solar calendar. For example, the 27th of Nisan is not always April 11. In 2011, Yom Hashoah (the 27th of Nisan) fall on May 1.

What does the word Holocaust mean?

The term Holocaust originally meant a sacrifice that was totally burned by fire. The Hebrew word Shoah, which means "catastrophe" or "destruction," is also used to refer to the Holocaust.

More information and teaching materials for Holocaust Remembrance: http://www.wsherc.org/teaching/commemoration/intro.aspx


Stories of local Holocaust survivors:
http://www.wsherc.org/center/survivorstories/survivorstories.aspx


Holocaust Writing and Art Contest:
http://www.wsherc.org/writingcontest/contest.aspx

Photo by Nicole Kahn. Holocaust Memorial on Mercer Island.

Clothier Made Nazi Uniforms

An interesting piece of information, courtesy of our Holocaust-guru, Bob H...

Hugo Boss Acknowledges Link to Nazi Regime
Published: August 15, 1997

FRANKFURT, Aug. 14— Before Hugo Boss A.G. became known for classic men's suits and flashy ties, the clothing manufacturer made uniforms for the Nazis, a company spokeswoman acknowledged today.

The company said it had become aware of the dealings with the Nazis after the name of its founder, Hugo Boss, who died in 1948, appeared on a list of dormant accounts released by Swiss bankers last month.

''Right now we are trying to get a handle on the situation,'' ...read more

Thomas Blatt, Survivor of Sobibor, Testifies Today

Thomas Blatt, one of only 53 survivors of the death camp Sobibor, lived for many years in Seattle and participated in the Holocaust Center's Speakers Bureau. He is testifying today against a former guard at Sobibor.

Read article in the Boston Globe

More on Thomas Blatt:

Blatt, Thomas Toivi. From the Ashes of Sobibor: A Story of Survival. Illinois: Northwestern University Press, 1997.

This book is a glimpse of Jewish life through the eyes of a twelve year old boy. The events of his separation from his family, six months in the Sobibor death camp, taking part in a successful uprising and finally the five years eluding Nazis and anti-Semitic nationalists.

Blatt, Thomas. Sobibor: The Forgotten Revolt - A Survivor's Report. H.E.P.; 1 edition, 1997.

"Escape from Sobibor" (DVD)
1999. Starring Rutger Hauer and Alan Arkin. Based in part on Thomas Blatt's story.

The above items are available to borrow from the Holocaust Center's library. Copies of From the Ashes of Sobibor can also be found in the Holocaust Center's high school teaching trunks.

Thomas Blatt's story and artifacts have been included in several of the Holocaust Center's materials, including the "Everyday Objects: Artifacts from Washington State Holocaust Survivors" poster series and the "Studying the Holocaust: Resistance, Rescue & Survival" Seattle Times Newspapers In Education series.

About the Holocaust Center

Education Outreach Intern

Hi all!

My name is Janna Charles and I recently became the Education Outreach Intern at the Washington State Holocaust Education Resource Center. I am currently working towards a double Major in English and Law, Societies and Justice at the University of Washington and have a cultivated interest in both education and human rights. In fact, it was my recent acceptance into the UW's Human Rights Minor that prompted my discovery of the internship position at WSHERC.

I've taken a number of classes on various human rights topics at the University of Washington and am very passionate about the topic! This quarter, I'm exploring conditions of prisoners in Guantanamo Bay in a class at the UW taught by Professor Jamie Mayerfeld. Other classes include: International Human Rights, Philosophy of Human Rights, Disability in Society, Women in Law. Many of the classes that constitute my Major and Minor coursework feature segments on the Holocaust: an extremely significant event on historical trajectory, specifically in regards to human rights.

Though I've only been at the Center a couple of weeks, I've already been engaged in a number of projects and have had a chance to peruse the wealth of resources that greet me every Monday and Wednesday at WSHERC. This includes teaching trunks full of books and other resources, many of which I recognized from my own experiences learning about the Holocaust in elementary, middle and high school. In spite of the short time I've spent with the Center so far, I feel as though I am already on the path toward developing a more holistic view of the Holocaust and getting a feel for the work that the organization is involved in. I'm excited to be part of such an important endeavor!

Miep Gies passes away at age 100

By ARTHUR MAX, Associated Press Writer

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands – Miep Gies, the office secretary who defied the Nazi occupiers to hide Anne Frank and her family for two years and saved the teenager's diary, has died, the Anne Frank Museum said Tuesday. She was 100.

Read more...

Children of Willesden Lane

The Children of Willesden Lane is the true story of Lisa Jura, a young girl who escapes Nazi persecution on the eve of World War II. This Web site offers resources to help you teach the book to middle and high school students.

"I like it because it provides so much for the beginning and seasoned teacher. The book is an easy read and tells a great story. The website is layered with lesson plans, videos, and great material. My students really like this book and always find something to connect them to the personal crisis of the Holocaust. I like it because it is a true story!!" - Teacher, Tacoma

http://www.learner.org/series/cowl/