Succos is over and everyone around here is getting back into school mode, including university students. Well, actually, my girls still have another week until school gets under way and back into its rhythm- the school’s annual heritage trip to Poland is next week. While not everyone goes, and there is an alternative plan for those who choose to stay, the majority of students do and this trip is a great opportunity for them to connect to their roots (either personal or national). As one who has gone on a similar trip like this in high school, as well as having close familial ties to the holocaust I’m a big advocate of the whole traveling-to-Poland idea.
I do, however, “have beef†with the Poles (for want of a better expression). I’m not a big fan of Germany. Last summer, on my way to camp, I had a layover in Munich, and I would be lying if I said that the German security guards with big guns didn’t scare me a little. I do have to give Germany some credit and that is that they took responsibility for their actions. On the international level they are usually pro-Israel, and the government has been paying reparations to the survivors and their families for the last 50 years or so. Will the small amount of money that my grandparents received make up for the loss of their son? Not in any way. But they’re still taking responsibility. Denying the Holocaust in Germany is a crime.
Not so in Poland. The Poles see themselves as the victims of the Nazis as well. I’m in no way denying that there were Poles killed by the Nazis and there were a number of those who even helped Jews during the war. Let’s face it, many Poles were happy to see the Nazis come and do what they did and even assisted them with their dirty work. So why then, won’t Poland take responsibility for its part? Not only that, but the Polish government gets upset and generally will vehemently deny the role it played.
To make a better future you have to learn from the past; own up to your mistakes. How can Poland rid itself of anti-Semitic influence if they deny that they have the problem to begin with? Owning up to your mistakes is already half the battle. Better late than never…
