“Auschwitz. Not long ago. Not far away.” That’s the name of an exhibit currently on display at the Royal Ontario Museum, which powerfully documents the history of the death camp.
In January 1942, Nazi leaders met to plan the “Final Solution to the Jewish Question.” Auschwitz was to play a key role in that regard. At least 1.1-million people were murdered at the extermination camp, including nearly a million Jews. During the Holocaust, six-million Jews were systematically murdered by the Nazis and their collaborators.
Nonetheless, it seems that for far too many people, the atrocities committed by the Nazis took place too long ago and too far away. Recent surveys reveal a very sharp increase in the percentage of Canadians who are uncertain about the number of Jews who were murdered during the Holocaust.
This is especially the case for young people, as illustrated in a 2019 poll conducted by Leger for the Association of Canadian Studies, which found that around one in 10 Canadians (11.7 per cent) between the ages of 18 and 24 believe that less than six-million Jews were killed during the Holocaust. In 2024, just over one in four (27 per cent) of Canadians in that age group believed the same thing.
A recently released survey in the United States found that nearly one-third of all Americans also believe that less than six-million Jews were killed during the Holocaust.
What might account for the recent decline in knowledge about the Holocaust? Many observers will say it is due to a lack of historical education. But that alone can’t explain such a significant erosion in awareness over such a short period of time.
Others will point to a significant increase in the spread of politically motivated misinformation fuelling distortions and outright denial of the Holocaust, and the substantial increase in such rhetoric on social media platforms following the October 7 terrorist attacks in Israel.
Another consideration is how the Holocaust is being taught at some universities. It has become fashionable for academics to insist that history must be understood through the lens of colonialism. Describing the Holocaust as one colonial genocide among many, some academics conclude that it was not unique, while others overplay the fact that the Jews were not the only victims.
Such a gross oversimplification of one the darkest chapters in history does a disservice to learning about the Holocaust. It serves to undercut knowledge and analysis of the uniqueness of the Holocaust.
Perhaps ironically, yet another challenge in countering the decline in Holocaust awareness comes from efforts to present a more inclusive version of the past. For example, on International Holocaust Remembrance Day this year, Canada’s head of state, Governor General Mary Simon, pointed out that, “More than one-million people were sent to their deaths at (the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration) camp during the Holocaust.”
You may have noticed something that’s not included in her statement: there’s no mention of Jews. This, despite the United Nations designating International Holocaust Remembrance Day to recall the six-million Jewish victims of the Holocaust and the other victims of Nazi persecution. Even if well motivated, the glaring omission of Jews in reference to the Holocaust by our head of state is tantamount to discussing mass murder without mentioning its principal victims.
Simon isn’t alone among global leaders in speaking about the Holocaust with mentioning Jews.
On the same day, the United Kingdom’s deputy prime minister, Angela Rayner, posted a picture of herself on social media lighting a candle accompanied by the message: “Tonight, I’m lighting a candle to remember all those who were murdered just for being who they were, and to stand against prejudice and hatred today. Never again.”Rayner needs a reminder that it’s OK to mention that Jews were murdered precisely because they were Jewish (full disclosure: my maternal grandparents were among those killed at Auschwitz because they were Jewish).
Referring to the Holocaust without mentioning Jews does serious harm to our ability to comprehend one of the darkest of chapters in history.
If we don’t refer to the principal victims of the Nazis’ final solution, we cannot properly comprehend what happened, why it happened and the lessons we need to learn to help us prevent it from happening again. We risk enabling influencers who would have us believe that these horrific tragedies took place too long ago and too far away.
National Post
Jack Jedwab is president of the Association for Canadian Studies.