Photo by: Michael Furman
Never Again!, a student organization that works to raise awareness about genocide and prevent future genocide, held a series of events last week to mark the third annual Holocaust and Genocide Awareness Week on campus.
Events ranged from a flag display representing the victims of the Holocaust to the 12-hour litany of those who perished in the Holocaust to a genocide survivors’ panel at which two survivors spoke about their ordeal.
There was also a Shabbat dinner that Jewish students were able to attend.
Keynote speaker Mohamed Yahya, a refugee from Darfur, spoke in Lindsay Auditorium.
“Our purpose is to plan programs to inform the students, faculty and staff of the University of Denver, as well as the community at large about the Holocaust, the dangers of apathy, xenophobia and appeasement, and the reoccurrence of genocide throughout the world today and to encourage activism to prevent said reoccurrence.
“We try to involve everyone at DU in learning about genocide, whether that is active engagement through attendance at programs or passive engagement through our yard signs or flag display,” ,” said Joel Portman, president of Never Again!
Lauren Goldstein, vice president of Chabad and a member of Never Again!, believes that Holocaust and Genocide Awareness Week is important because it serves to educate younger generations on the atrocities that were committed during World War II.
“College students specifically need to be more aware of what is considered a Holocaust and that it affects more people than just Jewish people,” Goldstein said. “It could happen at any time and its something we need to stop.”
Goldstein believes the litany and the flag display were the two most significant events that took place throughout the week.
“When you read names for 15 minutes, you can get through about one hundred to two hundred names. It hits you that it’s not just names on paper. It could be your best friends’ great grandmother or a family member, and it helps you to see that genocide affects everybody,” she said.
Goldstein added, “I would say that it’s really important for people to step out of their box and realize that if you’re not Jewish or weren’t part of Darfur or if you didn’t have family that died in the Holocaust, that doesn’t mean you can’t be part of a solution or that it doesn’t affect you on some level.”
Planning of the week began several months ago, when Never Again! worked with organizations such as the Holocaust Awareness Institute, which is part of the Center for Judaic Studies and Hillel.
