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What is Holocaust commemoration for? - Remembering Kristallnacht

We must avoid using Holocaust commemorations solely to consign Judeophobia to an eternal yesterday. We must recall the Holocaust in order to warn the world about similar and ongoing antisemitism in our world today.

By Eric Heinze
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Bundesarchiv_Bild_146-1970-083-42,_Magdeburg,_zerstörtes_jüdisches_Geschäft[1].jpg
Bundesarchiv_Bild_146-1970-083-42,_Magdeburg,_zerstörtes_jüdisches_Geschäft[1].jpg

Kristallnacht, which took place 9-10 November 1938. Wikimedia. Public domain.

We commemorate the past to understand the present. In learning about Europe’s imperial histories, for example, we explain problems faced by former colonies abroad and by minority communities at home. In the US, African-Americans shed light on current predicaments by teaching the histories of slavery and segregation.

What situation in today’s world are we seeking to understand when we memorialise Kristallnacht?

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Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0