Never Again What?

Timothy Birdnow

Never forget? Looks like we all forgot.

Half Of American Adults Aren't Aware That Six Million Jews Died In The Holocaust, Poll Finds

Pew Research Center released the findingson Wednesday, a little less than a week ahead of the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the infamous Nazi death camp Auschwitz, which took place on January 27, 1945. The survey asked nearly 13,000 American respondents to answer multiple-choice questions about the Holocaust, finding that only 45 percent correctly said that 6 million Jews were killed during the World War II genocide.

Of the respondents, 29 percent answered that they were not sure or had no answer to how many Jews were killed, while 14 percent underestimated the number. An additional 12 percent overestimated the amount, believing that more than 12 million Jews had been killed.

Most Americans also didn't know how Hitler came to power, with only 43 percent correctly answering that it was through a democratic political process. Twenty-five percent believed the Nazi leader had violently overthrown the German government, while 28 percent said they were not sure or had no answer.

I once had an argument with an older co-worker about that last; he was convinced Hitler seized power in a coup. This man was old enough to know better.

But he was a labor Democrat type, and he was woefully miseducated.

If those who do not remember history are doomed to repeat it, we are in for a terrible time in the near future.

Sadly this article quotes a rabbi who attacks "white nationalism" and compares our treatment of illegal aliens with the Holocaust. He shows himself to be as ignorant as the people he chastises for ignorance.

"It is hardly a surprise to have confirmed the gap in Americans' understanding of how Nazism came to power and the vastness of their murderous violence," Rabbi Alissa Wise, acting co-executive director of the progressive group Jewish Voice for Peace, told Newsweek in a statement about the Pew Research data."

"I imagine that a similar number of Americans are likewise unaware of other historical horrors wrought by white nationalism in this country towards Native Americans and enslaved Africans, or against imprisoned asylum-seekers right now," Wise said. "As racist ethnonationalism and white supremacy grows across the world, this study is an urgent and unsettling reminder of how little history is informing our understanding of today – and of what happens when we forget our histories."

Let's get our facts straight - about ALL things.

Posted by: Timothy Birdnow at 11:19 AM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
Post contains 419 words, total size 3 kb.