Discover the Past for the Future
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
CITIZENS’ RIGHTS Discover the past for the future The role of historical sites and museums in Holocaust education and human rights education in the EU This report covers most of the articles as enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, in particular those relating to Chapters I to IV – dignity, freedoms, equality, solidarity and citizens’ rights. Europe Direct is a service to help you find answers to your questions about the European Union Freephone number (*): 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (*) Certain mobile telephone operators do not allow access to 00 800 numbers or these calls may be billed. In certain cases, these calls may be chargeable from telephone boxes or hotels. Photo (cover & inside): iStockphoto More information on the European Union is available on the Internet (http://europa.eu). FRA – European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights Schwarzenbergplatz 11 – 1040 Vienna – Austria Tel.: +43 (0)1 580 30 - 0 Fax: +43 (0)1 580 30 - 691 Email: [email protected] fra.europa.eu Cataloguing data can be found at the end of this publication Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2011 ISBN 978-92-9192-699-2 doi: 10.2811/28863 © European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, 2011 Reproduction is authorised, except for commercial purposes, provided the source is acknowledged. Printed in Luxembourg Printed on white chlorine-free paper Discover the past for the future The role of historical sites and museums in Holocaust education and human rights education in the EU Foreword Knowledge of and reflection about the past is essential in order to develop answers to the challenges of today and not to repeat the mistakes of the past. The history of the Holocaust has shown the consequences that the adherence to ideologies of ethnic or cultural superiority and the disrespect of fundamental human rights can have. It is the duty of present societies to educate today’s young generation and future generations about the importance of human rights for their lives and the lives of others. This report outlines the findings of the first EU-wide research on the role of Holocaust-related sites and exhibitions in educating young Europeans about the Holocaust and human rights. With this research, the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) contributes to a new discussion at European level, bringing the two fields of Holocaust education and human rights education together and suggesting how the merging of the two could develop into a new knowledge of past and present. Many of the sites visited in the course of this project bear direct witness to National Socialist crimes and the consequences of racist and anti-Semitic discrimination, dehumanisation and, ultimately, the deprivation of human beings of their right to life. The students and teachers interviewed in the course of this research confirm the strong effect that visits to former sites of crime had on them, as well as affirming the importance of dealing with the past in a meaningful way. However, which is a meaningful way to deal with the history of the Holocaust? How can reflection about the history of the Holocaust be sustained? How can young people connect knowledge about history with contemporary and future issues of concern? The analysis of the findings of the empirical studies comes to a number of conclusions about the role of commemoration sites and historical museums in Holocaust education and human rights education today. The FRA hopes that the outcome of this project will contribute to advancing the debate on how to preserve the memory of the past for the sake of the future. There is no doubt that this task needs approaches that link Holocaust education and human rights education, and that commemoration sites and historical museums could play an important role in this regard. In addition to this research report, the FRA is also publishing two handbooks: a guide for teachers on how to make best use of visits to Holocaust-related sites and a discussion book addressing issues relevant for the sites themselves, including case studies of educational approaches that seek to link education about the Holocaust with education about human rights. Morten Kjærum Director 3 Contents FOREWORD .......................................................................................................................................................3 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ..................................................................................................................................7 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .................................................................................................................................... 9 INTRODUCTION ...............................................................................................................................................13 1. LITERATURE ON HOLOCAUST EDUCATION AND HUMAN RIGHTS EDUCATION AT SITES AND MUSEUMS ..........................................................................................................................19 1.1. Holocaust education ................................................................................................................................................19 1.2. Human rights education ..........................................................................................................................................25 1.3. Conclusions .............................................................................................................................................................. 28 2. PERSPECTIVES FROM MINISTRIES........................................................................................................... 29 2.1. Ministries in charge of sites and museums ......................................................................................................... 29 2.2. Questions posed .......................................................................................................................................................31 2.3. Official ecommendationsr for human rights education ......................................................................................31 2.4. Institutions responsible for human rights awareness raising ............................................................................32 2.5. Fostering projects in the sectors of Holocaust and human rights education ...................................................33 2.6. The role of memorial sites and museums in confronting the intolerance, racism and anti-Semitism of today ........................................................................................................................33 2.7. Encouraging visits to memorial sites and museums in the EU ......................................................................... 34 2.8. Aims of visits to memorial sites by pupils ............................................................................................................35 2.9. Good practice examples ......................................................................................................................................... 36 2.10. Conclusions ............................................................................................................................................................... 36 3. PERSPECTIVES FROM SELECTED HOLOCAUST SITES AND MUSEUMS ................................................... 39 3.1. The choice of Member States and institutions .................................................................................................... 39 3.2. Educational focus of the institutions .....................................................................................................................41 3.3. Numbers of visitors and target groups for educational work ........................................................................... 43 3.4. Educational activities of the institutions ............................................................................................................. 45 3.5. Duration of young people’s visits to commemoration sites and museums ....................................................46 3.6. Resources ................................................................................................................................................................. 47 3.7. Success factors of educational work ....................................................................................................................49 3.8. Challenges and obstacles to educational work ...................................................................................................49 3.9. The main aims of educational work ..................................................................................................................... 50 3.10 Conclusions ..............................................................................................................................................................52 4. PERSPECTIVES FROM TEACHERS AND STUDENTS...................................................................................53 4.1. Conducting focus group discussions .....................................................................................................................53 4.2. Teacher discussions ................................................................................................................................................ 54 4.3. Student discussions ................................................................................................................................................