Auschwitz and Academic Freedom

Can you get in trouble for taking your students to Auschwitz to teach them about the Holocaust?  Apparently you can.  The situation seems very odd, though, and there might be legal action pending.

Nerd Notes: A Princeton Freshman Checks His Privilege

It's not what you think.  This little op-ed has blown up the Nerdverse, and plenty of people are unloading on the guy, but you should first read what he has to say.

O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Here's some fascinating forgotten history, a tale of two siblings. While one brother joined the Nazi Party, the other helped Jews during the Holocaust.  Meet Albert Göring, the younger brother of Hermann Göring.  Yes, that Hermann Göring.

More Thoughts on Bombing Auschwitz

I'm pretty sure I've blogged about this before (though I can't seem to find the actual post since apparently I'm a blithering idiot today), but here's a new iteration: "Politicians, Historians, and the Holocaust."

History Lesson: Women in World War II

Take a look at this remarkable collection of photos. 

Some of the women you will have heard of, others not.  The first one you meet is Lyudmila Pavlichenko, a Russian sniper who racked up 309 confirmed German kills and so became the killingest female sniper in history.  The second photo gives you the infamous Nazi filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl.  Elsewhere in the photo collection you will see, in moral and historical terms, the good, the bad, and the ugly from every aspect and location of the war.  (The "you go, girl" tag is obviously only for the good ones.)  In an historical event as massive as WWII, one tends to forget that it was composed of individuals.  This photo essay is a reminder of those individuals and the many roles they took.

Quote of the Day: Academic Freedom and Holocaust Denial

The Chronicle of Higher Education recently had a bit about a professor of English literature who claims that the Holocaust is a hoax. (I know, I know.  *Sigh.*  This and other similar types of crackpot conspiracy theorists drive me crazy.)  The reader comments are of varying quality, but I rather like this anonymous one (#36):

Academic freedom protects academics' ability to conduct research, ask questions, form conclusions, and espouse opinions without fear of political or other reprisals. It does not, in my understanding, give anyone license to deny historical fact for the sake of drawing attention to themselves, or for the promotion of irrational, unjust, and fundamentally dangerous ideologies. The historical existence of the Holocaust is not a matter of opinion. 

No, it's not. It's a matter of fact.  We're all entitled to our own opinions, but not to our own facts.  On a related note, take a look at Rachel Lucas's account of her visit to Auschwitz if you've not had a chance to do so.

A Tree Grows in Montreal

It's no ordinary tree.  It's a sapling from the famous chestnut tree that Anne Frank often mentioned in her diary.

Confronting History: Rachel Lucas Visits Auschwitz

One of my favorite bloggers, Rachel Lucas, recently visited Auschwitz and Birkenau. Don't miss her post (with photos). It is a powerful and sobering read. Blurb:

Someone told me a few months ago that Auschwitz would be a life-changer for me, and they were right, but I would like to emphasize that it is a good change. In the six weeks since I was there, the majority of my previous petty concerns have stopped mattering to me, completely. I just stopped caring about a lot of things that were truly pointless. It has been a very surprising and welcome change. My experience of life is different, in a good way. Something about that day in that place made me realize that if I don’t enjoy and appreciate every single moment of my charmed and comfortable life, then I am an unforgivable a**.

I don’t say that lightly. It is a real thing. All of us who are able to write or read blogs, we have it easy by any measure and we are fools if we don’t actively appreciate every single morsel of freedom and plenty that we have.

Indeed.