Learning about the Holocaust in Public School Day 1

My world history class just had a test on World War one last week. Monday we started learning about the after effects of World War 1, and today/yesterday we have started learning about what led up to World War 2, what Fascism is, how Hitler got power and how Germany began the war. Some of it is actually new to me. I mean I know all about the Holocaust, I've read tons of books, we learn about it every year in Hebrew school, and we've learned about it in school in past years; but still I mean I knew he slowly started making anti Semitic laws, but I never knew how blindlessly Britain and France acted. Germany broke the treaty of Versailles tons of times before Britain and France did anything. The Czechs just surrounded pretty much, and Britain and France didn't come to any countries aid until Germany attacked Poland, oh and Poland fell very quickly, because Germany had the Soviets helping them.


My teacher gave us a packet to work on, to be ready to talk in class tomorrow during our in class discussion. (he give a lot of packets, usually all kids do is skip them and find the answers) Nonetheless when working on the packet I felt very uncomfortable. Here i was learning about how my people were murdered just like it was any other history unit; It's so much more important!!! It destroyed European Jewry, it's cruel, and its disgusting.

I just read about the trials of Nazi soldiers in Nuremberg, these occurred shortly after the war was over.  (Another thing, I never realized how much military battles and tactics happened in the war.) In my history textbook it says that once guilty some, i repeat some Nazis were executed. Let me say that again, only some.

My textbook always start a section by explaining how a historical even is important now, want to know why the Holocaust is important now. I'll give you a hint, its not about how now Jews are even more dispersed across the world, or even how Jews were murdered and treated like animals. Or how its a humanly ethical important thing to learn about so it will never happen again. Nope the reason the Holocaust is important today is because it helped form Israel.