I am absolutely amazed by the reports coming out of Iran of the denial of the current president of that country, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad; stating that he feels the Holocaust never happened. I remember a freshman social studies teacher by the name of Jim Barth who showed us a number of movies that had to do with the Holocaust. He told us it was important for us to know the horrors of the murder of thousands of Jews in the name of ethnic purity by German Nazis. The outrageous comments by Ahmadinejad reinforces the need to never forget.
I wrote the following piece for the Northfield News a few years ago. I think it is relevant to place it here again. My question for Ahmadinejad: if the Holocaust never happened, explain the woman’s circumstance in this experience.
In the mid 1970’s I was working as a night manager at a local grocery store in Corpus Christi, Texas located in a very affluent part of town, just off of a boulevard that ran adjacent to Corpus Christi Bay.
In the midst of the trimmings of affluence, one individual stood out. She was in her 60’s, a painfully thin woman, about five-foot, four inches tall. Her face bore the weathered look of someone who had seen more sorrow than joy. She seldom spoke but when she did, her accent betrayed a German past.
The weather in Corpus Christi in the summer can be brutal. I was always intrigued why the woman would wear a blouse with long sleeves, a sweater and a black long dress reaching down to her ankles. She also wore a small hat on the top of her head She seldom made eye contact but when she did, there was an empty look: almost hollow. I have seen the same look on the faces of people immediately after they have been exposed to an extremely tragic event.
This day, we had several people call in sick so I was stuck working a cash register at a busy time of the day when the woman pulled into my line and began to put the few items she had in her basket onto the belt. As she reached across to move an item forward, I caught a hint of what looked like a tattoo on her arm. What on earth would an old woman be doing with a tattoo on her forearm I wondered. I didn’t have to wait long for the answer because as she reached across the belt, the tattoo revealed itself as a series of numbers. The telltale sign bore witness that this woman was most likely a survivor of a German Nazi concentration or death camp. The expression on my face must have betrayed me. I looked up and for a time longer than was comfortable for me, our eyes met. The woman smiled, nodded her head in understanding and pulled the sleeve down on her blouse.
For as long as I remember I have been sickened by the obscene acts committed by Hitler’s final solution.” The thought of murdering millions of people in the name of racial purity is beyond my comprehension
Whenever the woman shopped at my store, we shared short conversations and a mutual smile. When she smiled, her once hollow eyes would light up in a joyful manner that shouted of her joy of life. I must admit I found it remarkable that a woman who had endured so much would go out of her way to comfort, — to reassure someone like me. Words cannot express the compassion and love I have for that woman.
A number of my good friends have family that lost their lives in German concentration camps. I grieve for the personal suffering that endures generation after generation. Sixty years later the pain and horror endures in the lives of many of the survivors and their families.
The next time you decide to mark or draw a representation of hate on someone’s property, you need to know that you have dishonored the memory of millions of innocent people who were killed by individuals who preferred cold blooded murder to tolerance and created a legacy of obscene hate that will forever stain the psyche of humanity. Be ashamed, be very ashamed of yourself.
Shame on you if you allow hate-filled graffiti to remain on your property: shame on you if you do not express your outrage, living in a community that promotes inclusiveness and understanding.
Most likely, the person or persons responsible for the obscene markings and the words “final solution” painted on vehicles and walls of buildings were put there by someone who may not fully understand the impact of what they did. We must ensure that future generations understand the hate represented by these markings. We owe it to the memories of every person who died in that conflict: both: soldiers and innocents, to never forget.
From a law enforcement perspective, what you did was a crime by marking others’ property. In fact, it’s a serious crime: a hate crime. If you get caught, I promise you that I will do everything possible to make sure you learn the evil of what you represented by your actions. You need to repair the emotional damage you have caused by coming forward to acknowledge what you have done and apologize to our community.
Parents please take a moment and make sure your kids and teens fully understand the damage done by reckless actions such as these. Let’s make sure the practice of spreading hate through the display of these terrible symbols stops now.
Ahmadinejad’s comments prove there is still the danger for racism and hatred to threaten the rest of us. The Ahmadinejads of the world give fuel to the racists and fanatics just looking for an excuse to murder in the name of “racial purity.”
It’s sick.