If there’s one thing true, it’s that far too many Americans no longer believe in the words from Emma Lazarus’s poem “New Colossus” that are inscribed on the Statue of Liberty.
Don’t kid yourself.
Our tolerance and inclusiveness have nearly always been something better in ideals than in reality.
Ken Burns’ brilliance in studying historical subjects ranging from the Civil War to Baseball to Jazz and Country Music has been turned to the subject of the U.S. and the Holocaust.
“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses …”
Unless they’re Jewish … or Asian … or Black.
The new series is shorter than the others — just three episodes — and Trumpanzees and others like them will certainly deny that the United States could ever have played such a huge role in the death of 6,000,000 European Jews. It may amaze more intelligent Americans that the Trump crowd to realize how prevalent anti-Semitism was less than 100 years ago.
Anyone surprised that Americans could be so bigoted should ask any African-American, because of course black people had it worst of all. For all the prejudices against Jews, they weren’t being lynched.
One of the great obscenities of American history in the 20th century was that when it still could have made a difference, a majority of Americans were opposed to allowing refugees into the country because they thought we already had too many Jews in the U.S.
Even after the war, only a very small percentage of Americans thought we should allow more Jewish refugees into the country. If that shows one thing, it’s that you can kill the haters like Adolf Hitler but the hate itself never really dies.
That’s one reason Burns’ use of one of the few European Jews widely known in this country — Anne Frank — is so poignant. Frank’s book, “The Diary of a Young Girl,” told the story of a young woman who died at Bergen-Belsen months before her 16th birthday. For all she went through, Frank remained positive.
“In spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at heart.”
I wish I believed that. I don’t think people are basically bad, but I believe they are selfish in the most traditional sense of the word.
SELF-ish.
I think people naturally tend to judge decisions by what effect they will have on themself, and generally make their decision on what’s best for them as long as it isn’t openly evil.
That’s what makes the Normandy landing on June 6, 1944, so amazing. Especially the first wave at Omaha and Utah beaches. Those guys knew in their hearts they were almost certainly going to die, and nearly all of them did. But each wave made it a little easier for the next one and eventually Hitler’s Festung Europa — thought to be impossible — died.
A very different time.
And while it wasn’t a better time to be black, gay, disabled or a woman, while people were often less tolerant of those different from themselves, people did seem to be aware that there were more important things in the world than their own concerns.
Fifty million people — combatants and non-combatants alike — died all around the world during the years of World War II. Six millions of them were European Jews Hitler tried to exterminate. It was one of the greatest crimes of history, but Judaism did survive Hitler and it will survive the haters here in America and around the world.
But only if we never forget the evil that walks among us.