FORT BENNING, Ga., (May 11, 2016) -- The Fort Benning community came together May 4 to remember the bravery and suffering of the victims of the Holocaust, a dark period in the world's history that saw more than 11 million people unmercifully killed.
"Today we celebrate those who took a stand against absolute barbaric evil," said Col. Patrick Donahoe, the Chief of Staff of the Maneuver Center of Excellence, during a special Holocaust commemorative service.
Acts of courage, similar to the ones that occurred during the Holocaust, are still required of individuals today if they desire to live in a peaceful world, Donahoe reminded the dozens who gathered at the National Infantry Museum for the Days of Remembrance "Learning from the Holocaust: Acts of Courage" commemorative service.
Attendees were shown a video created by the United States Holocaust Memorial to stress the importance of why people should remember the Holocaust.
Students from Faith Middle School and McBride Elementary School participated in the service by reciting poetry.
Lauryn Vigeland, an eighth-grader at Faith Middle School, spoke of Adolf Hitler in her original poem, "The Great Deception."
"He told us they were the enemy. That they didn't belong here," she read.
In addition, the students performed a candle lighting ceremony, explaining what each of the six candles represented. They also explained that the yellow paper butterflies given to everyone in attendance represented the hope that the children suffering through the Holocaust felt.
"We've been studying the Holocaust since December of 2015. We actually got the chance to take our students to the Breman Museum in Atlanta and they got the chance to meet a Holocaust survivor," said Kelisa Wing, an eighth-grade teacher at Faith Middle School.
Wing said her students read the book "Night" written by Elie Wiesel, a Holocaust survivor.
"The students have really immersed themselves with the Holocaust and understand what it means," she said.
After the students' presentation, Rabbi Yitzchok Adlerstein, the director of Interfaith Affairs for the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles, was the guest speaker at the event.
Rabbi (Capt.) Moshe Lans with the 5th Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment, 194th Armor Brigade, reached out to Adlerstein, a second-generation Holocaust survivor by way of his mother, who narrowly escaped the confines of a concentration camp.
During his presentation, Adlerstein asked, "Why should you care?"
He offered an explanation saying, "The lessons of the Holocaust are there for the taking and when those lessons are not learned then history repeats itself."
He described lessons that individuals can take away from the Holocaust.
Ordinary people can become bestial murderers. Holocausts don't occur in a vacuum. When people talk about destroying you, sometimes you have to take them seriously. Hatred can be more powerful than reason. The Holocaust happened because the "Big Lie" was perpetuated, he said.
Adlerstein expanded on the "Big Lie" using the definition given by the United States Office of Strategic services.
"People will believe a big lie sooner than a little one. And if you repeat it frequently enough, people will sooner or later believe it," he said.
Adlerstein also told stories of individuals who despite fearing for their lives helped Jews during the Holocaust.
He spoke of Chiune Sugihara, a Japanese diplomat, who signed transit visas so that Jews could seek refuge in Japanese territory.
He mentioned Irena Sendler, a Polish social worker, who smuggled children out of the Warsaw ghetto in potato sacks and body bags.
The entry of the U.S. military in to World War II is what ended the Holocaust, he added.
"You are the spiritual heirs of the liberators of those concentration camps. You are part of the same group, the same organization that guarantees the viability of freedom and democracy, of good itself to survive," Adlerstein said.
Adlerstein closed by asking another question, "What does it take to stand up to evil?"
His answer, "People who realize there is such a thing and are willing to take a principle position and to fight it with all resources they have, including their lives."
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