The Holocaust 75 Years Later

Tania Chen
Foto: Ap
La Jornada Maya

Mérida, Yucatán
Jueves 12 de diciembre, 2019

At the end of World War II, the liberation of the Nazi concentration camps and the video footage taken became the cornerstone of proof of the atrocities that had been committed. While there was an attempt to destroy the evidence and records, the overwhelming evidence physical evidence of the Nazi’s crimes could not be denied by the end of the war.

‘Never again’ became the shorthand motto repeated by the Jewish survivors as well as the allied powers; a verbal commitment to remembering the Holocaust. It first appeared on signs made by the prisoners at Buchenwald in 1945 after the camp was liberated. The phrase was once again popularised and associated to the commitment of remembering of the Holocaust by Meir Kahne’s book “Never Again!: A Program for Survival”, published in 1972.

The sentiment behind the phrase remains at the forefront of people’s memory in relation to the Holocaust, the promise to never stand by while another genocide takes place.

Unfortunately, in the decades following the Holocaust, there have been genocides across the globe, most notably in Rwanda, Cambodia and the Balkans. Currently, in Syria, around 100,000 Kurdish civilians have fled their homes due to fear of ethnic cleansing by the Turkish forces in the region. Meanwhile, reports from China in regards to the Uyghur minority in Xingjian are troubling to say the least.

[b]Can genocide be ever eradicated? Can antisemitism?[/b]

As camp survivors die of old age, so too does their memory, making it vitally important to preserve it in order to make sure it neither forgotten nor allowed to occur again. Seventy-five years later, the words remain in people’s minds when discussing the Holocaust but the fight against antisemitism is far from over.

In Europe, alongside the rise of populism and nativist nationalism, there has been a resurgence of antisemitism. However, Europe is not the only continent prey to the tide of antisemitism. Latin America too has its own brand of antisemitism and intolerance, although its roots are different. European antisemitism is deeply embedded in history, present since the Medieval Ages and having manifested itself in extreme violence against its Jewish population. The Holocaust is the tragic culmination of centuries of antisemitism in Europe.

In early October 2019, the unthinkable happened in Germany. An armed man attempted a mass shooting on a synagogue in Halle. Prior and during the attack, the shooter broadcasted 35 minutes of it using twitch.tv, a live-streaming platform that is accessible to all. This is the second time an incident of this nature is filmed and uploaded onto the internet, used by the shooters as a ‘manifesto’ and attempt to spread their ideas.

But this is far from the only example of antisemitism in the last few months.

In June, the Valediction Memorial at Prague’s main railway station was vandalised in what was clearly a carefully planned attack. This memorial commemorates the escape of Jewish children from the Nazis after the invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1939. This memorial is a reminder of the heart-breaking sacrifice parents had to do make to keep their children safe, and a reminder of the deep wounds inflicted on vulnerable minorities by hatred.

If antisemitism in Europe is the inheritance of centuries of prejudice and distrust, what of Latin America?

Antisemitism is not an inheritance but rather an implantation in Latin America. At the end of the Second World War, countries like Argentina, Chile and Paraguay opened their doors to fleeing Nazis who inevitably brought with them the seeds of anti-Semitic ideology. However, the nature of antisemitism in the area are also closely linked to the presence of Hezbollah and other Islamic radicals, as highlighted by the 1992 attack on the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires.

Argentina has been the epicentre of two of the biggest anti-Semitic attacks in Latin America: the bombing of the Israeli embassy in 1992, and then, in 1994, the bombing at the AMIA (Argentine Israelite Mutual Association) building, where 85 people were killed and over 300 injured. The investigation into the whole affair has caused much controversy and accusations cover up from the government. What is more telling is that Argentina labelled Hezbollah a terrorist organization in 2019, more than twenty years after the attacks.

Furthermore, South America has become an important base of operation, especially financially, for Hezbollah; not only have several drug cartels in the region have been rumoured to have close ties with Hezbollah, but also there have been reports of Middle Eastern mobsters having significant control in the Triple Frontier area. The cocaine trade in the region is worth millions and provides funding for weapons in Syria whose stance with respect to Israel is no secret. Part of Hezbollah’s core ideology includes Holocaust denial and the dissemination of anti-Semitic conspiracies.

With the inherent challenges facing developing Latin American countries, the propagation of drug cartels continues to grow unchecked. Poverty, rising social instability and inequality are the perfect ingredients to allow criminal activities to continue despite government attempts. Though Latin America does not have a centuries old history of antisemitism, if unchecked it could lead to a problem in the following decades with the growth of radical elements in the area.

Nearly 75 years after and both genocide and antisemitism look to remain present in society. So, can genocide and antisemitism ever be eradicated? Steps have been taken, within Germany to consider the use of the swastika and Nazi salute as a criminal offence. Old concentration camps like Auschwitz stand in memory of their victims, offering a sobering reality. In different parts of the Western world museums that speak about the Holocaust have been constructed and have a steady visitor count, dedicated to preserving the memory of the Holocaust victims as well as educating visitors on themes of tolerance and the dangers of prejudice.

Unfortunately, there are no easy answers in the currently volatile political climate. With the rise of populism and the weakening of liberal democracy, there will always be the need to blame minorities for the problems that populist governments are unable or unwilling to tackle. The first step to combat this is to ‘never forget’ and educate all with respect to the dangers of prejudice and hatred of minorities.

Absent that, hate will always find a place in political and social discourse, and fear will remain an active element of politics.

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