When I was a secondary student in Glasgow in the 1970s, learning about the Holocaust was not included in my study of the Second World War.
My History teacher explained to me that this was because the Holocaust was too upsetting to teach. I did not understand why my teacher considered it acceptable to ignore the black and white photograph of the cartload of skeletal Jewish corpses at Bergen-Belsen in our history textbook, which was clearly upsetting.
Despite its obvious relevance to understanding the Second World War the bravery of the British Armed Forces, and the foundation of the UN Human Rights, the closeness in time to the Holocaust, was a barrier to its teaching.
In contrast, the unprecedented increase in antisemitism, hostility and violence towards British Jews and Jews elsewhere, has moved the Holocaust closer.
The Holocaust did not begin with death camps and gas chambers. It took several years to progress to these most extreme manifestations of antisemitism. The Holocaust began with the normalisation of antisemitic imagery and language that alienated Jewish people, collectively, from wider society.
During the last two years, the otherness and vulnerability that many British Jews have experienced have progressed to fear. In my first year at primary school, I sat in the classroom playing with Fuzzy Felt and wooden jigsaws while the rest of my class went to morning assembly. As a teenager, I mimed hymns at assemblies and was excluded from the tennis club across the road where I lived because it did not allow Jewish members. Otherness was an acceptable and normal way of life for Jews in Scotland; but it never kept us awake at night with the fear that we face today.
Last year’s attack at Heaton Park Synagogue, Manchester, in which two Jewish people were murdered and another three seriously injured, was the first terror attack to ever take place in a synagogue on British soil. This, together with last month’s conviction of three men in an antisemitic terror plot, also in Manchester, and this month’s sentencing of a mother and daughter in Scotland for racially and religiously aggravated hate crime offences, which included Holocaust denial, explain why for many British Jews, fear is the new normal.
At this point in time, it is uncertain whether this is a stain on the British history of antisemitism or a mark of a new trend. This is of concern to everyone, irrespective of their faith position, who is committed to equality, human rights and citizenship; it does not exclusively concern those committed to Holocaust Education and Remembrance.
The relationship between Teaching and Learning about the Holocaust (TLH) and antisemitism education is not as straightforward as one might think. Ten years ago, I spoke to a group of secondary pupils from Glasgow after their guided visit to Krakow and Auschwitz-Birkenau about their experience. Surprisingly, they were unable to explain the term ‘antisemitism’ to me without prompts. This suggests that TLH cannot be exclusively relied upon to teach antisemitism education.
UNESCO programmes on antisemitism education train educators to better identify, prevent and confront antisemitism in their schools and in the wider society. Studying the Holocaust can, and should, better equip people in understanding the nature of antisemitism; it cannot feasibly do the rest.
The updated version of the Recommendations for Teaching and Learning about the Holocaust, published online by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) last month, places greater emphasis on education about antisemitism than its predecessor, and addresses contemporary issues that educators face today. For example, this resource includes guidance on the use of digital technology in an environment which propagates antisemitism, Holocaust denial and distortion.
In partnership with UNESCO, this second edition supports educators to understand the significance of the Holocaust today. Feedback from Scotland’s Vision Schools that demonstrate good practice in Holocaust education, is that learning about the Holocaust contributes to values such as respect, integrity, compassion, and community involvement – all of which are integral to fostering responsible citizenship.
These values are demonstrated in lessons from the Holocaust that focus on the bravery and actions of the Righteous Amongst the Nation: non- Jews who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust.
Jane Haining (1897-1944), a missionary for the Church of Scotland is the only Scot to receive this honour. Haining taught and cared for Jewish girls who lived next to the Girls Home of the Scottish Mission in Budapest. Charged with the crime of ‘working among Jews’, she was deported to Auschwitz where she was murdered.
Haining demonstrated extraordinary faith, bravery, and citizenship. Who would be worthy of a similar title should this title be bestowed upon individuals today?
In accordance with the criteria for the above honour, I would nominate Youssef Ziadna, a Bedouin Israeli taxi (minibus) driver who saved approximately 30 young people from the Nova music festival massacre in Israel in October 2023, and Ahmed al -Ahmed, a recent Australian immigrant who saved Jewish lives, by attacking the assailant of the Bondi beach last month. The ‘Righteous’ remind us of positive traits of humanity and teach us that everyone has the potential to make a difference.
As we commemorate Holocaust Memorial Day this year, it is worth reflecting that the Holocaust not only continues to be relevant to our students today but is arguably more relevant than ever.
Paula Cowan MBE is a Reader in Education at University of the West of Scotland (UWS) and founder and Director of Vision Schools Scotland.
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