Dr. Oren Stier, author of Committed to Memory: Cultural Mediations of the Holocaust and fellow with the Center for Advanced Studies at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, addressed a capacity crowd on May 10 at the Newman Center.
The discussion focused on the trends of historic cultural symbols such as images like the yellow Star of David and the pink triangle – which has come to represent the gay and lesbian community.
These images have also served as symbols of pride for those groups persecuted during the Holocaust, including Jews and homosexuals.
Additionally, part of the conversation discussed how the swastika has remained such a dominant representation of hatred some 60 years after the fall of the Nazi Party.
For those in attendance, a new light was shed on the many sides of symbolism. Stier viewed these icons as a way for the public to relate to the Holocaust, as well as learn and grow from it.
“It’s difficult to get students to recognize and understand both the nature and the pervasiveness of anti-Semitic images,” Stier said.
The lecture, “Stars, Triangles, and Swastikas: Appropriating Symbols, Shaping Memory,” was based on his recent research as a 2004 Scholar in Residence at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.
The focus was on bringing the history and the future of such symbols into the limelight, so as to better inform the public of their representation and to bring about a solid background for some of the symbols, including the Sanskrit roots of the swastika and its place within ancient Hinduism.
Currently Stier is an associate professor of religious studies and the associate director for Judaic studies at Florida International University.
“People are interested in their own roots, in their own traditions, in learning about them,” added Stier.
The speech was part of a continually growing program at DU, the Holocaust Awareness Institute, which houses itself within the Center for Judaic Studies.
Including a hearty list of speakers, the institute brings the region’s largest resource to promote the education of the holocaust.
Stier’s talk was the last event in the 2005 Holocaust Awareness Week.
Their resources have become available to area teachers, including what has been coined the “Tolerance Trunk”, in which a collection of multi-media tools become available for more effective teaching methods.
Through their Speakers Bureau, Holocaust survivors and liberators can share their first hand accounts to the surrounding community.
The Judaic Studies center has been supplying DU and the surrounding area with speakers and resources since 1983. Students can look forward to more such events in the coming academic year.
For more information on upcoming events and how to become better involved within DU’s Center for Judaic Studies, visit their website at www.du.edu/cjs.
