Being a part of a small international studies community learning about historic human rights abuses and genocide can be very emotionally taxing at times, especially when we are routinely visiting sites of the Holocaust and the oppressive communist regime in the Czech Republic. As important as it is for us to look toward the atrocities of the Holocaust and other histories of human rights infringement to recognize the power structures that lead to rampant human rights abuses, genocide, and so much global suffering, doing so is no comfortable task.
One very helpful aspect of studying such human agony and affliction with a cohort of students from many backgrounds is the solidarity we create with one another. Having a community to debrief and critically engage with the history we learn through our site visits and discussions is something I have grown to appreciate deeply.
The picture I chose to include in this Blog post is from the Pinkas Synagogue in the Prague Jewish Quarter. We visited several synagogues and historic sites in Prague on this day, but the permanent exhibition in this synagogue, which displayed artwork along with the names of the 77,297 Bohemian and Moravian Jewish people who were murdered during the Holocaust, was especially impactful. Witnessing all of the names written on the walls forced us to come face to face with the atrocities of the Holocaust and grounded the sometimes unfathomable evil into the names of real people and families.
Beyond thinking about solidarity in terms of the wonderful support system I have experienced here, studying the Holocaust and World War II has also taught me important lessons about solidarity. During times of unfathomable persecution, many diverse Jewish communities created solidarity through the preservation of culture, art, religion, etc., a form of resistance when the Nazis sought their erasure.
More negatively, we have discussed extensively, times when the world needed solidarity, but instead chose division. It is difficult to grapple with the international complicity of the Holocaust (and of course many other genocides and events of enormous human suffering). So many individuals and states actively choose silence over solidarity. Very few places accepted large amounts of refugees during World War II, an action that would have saved millions. This has had me reflecting on the dire need for international solidarity to this day. Global human suffering persists despite the existence of money and resources that could save lives and rectify many global injustices and exploitations. I believe we all need to think about actions we can take to prevent ourselves, and the countries within which we reside, from perpetuating injustices and human rights abuses to the best of our ability.
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