Commentary - Absence of siren doesn't mean we shouldn't pause and reflect

News > Commentary - Absence of siren doesn't mean we shouldn't pause and reflect

Absence of siren doesn't mean we shouldn't pause and reflect

Posted 5/2/2011

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Commentary by Col. Michael J. Underkofler
514th Air Mobility Wing commander

5/2/2011 - JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. (AFNS) -- For one week each spring, we as Americans formally pause to remember all those who perished more than sixty years ago in the Holocaust. This annual commemoration was established by the United States Congress in 1979 and is known as the Days of Remembrance.

The observance falls each year around Yom Hashoah, the 27th day of the month of Nisan in the Jewish calendar. In Hebrew, Yom Hashoah literally means the Day of (remembrance of) the Holocaust. This year Yom Hashoah is May 1, and the Days of Remembrance are observed this year from May 1 through 8.

In Israel, since the early 1960s, a siren sounds at 11 a.m. on Yom Hashoah to signal two minutes of silent devotion. Throughout the world, many Jews will observe Yom Hashoah in synagogues or in the broader Jewish community.

But Yom Hashoah and the week-long Days of Remembrance are not observances only for Jews. All humanity -- Jew and Gentile -- suffered because of the Holocaust, and consequently, all humanity ought to pause and remember those who died.

It is also fitting during the Days of Remembrance to honor those who fought against the Holocaust, those who liberated the camps, those who fought to document what had happened and those who continue today to tell the story.

The Holocaust, or Shoah, was the systematic extermination of six million Jews, approximately two-thirds of the pre-war European Jewish population. Killed along with the Jews were five million others who included political dissidents, the Roma (gypsies), handicapped and others deemed less desirable by the Nazis. Starting first as harassment, name-calling and false blame, the hatred against the Jews and others ultimately grew into an accepted practice of annihilation. Families had their possessions confiscated, were forced to live in ghettos and finally were transported to labor camps where most were abused, then killed, in short order.

In early 1945, the allies were able to push through Europe to the heart of the Nazi-held stronghold. American soldiers were soon witnesses and liberators at the gates of the wretched death camps. They were not prepared for, nor were they able to comprehend the magnitude of, the evil that took place. The camps were horrific cesspools where the dignity of human life was lost. So efficient was the killing machine that most historians would later agree if the war had lasted much longer, most European Jews would have been exterminated.

The Americans who liberated the camps were deeply affected by what they saw.

Tough-as-nails Generals Patton and Eisenhower were so visibly shaken at the camps they became ill. Eisenhower said in a letter in April 1945, "I made the visit deliberately, in order to be in a position to give first-hand evidence of these things if ever, in the future, there develops a tendency to charge these allegations merely to 'propaganda.'"

The American liberators instinctively knew what to do. They took the time to bury and honor the dead and carefully nurse to health the gaunt living who remained.

Remembering the Holocaust is important to Americans, especially those serving in the armed forces, for several reasons. It was the American military that liberated many of the death camps, then exposed and documented what had taken place. America also welcomed many of those who survived and provided them opportunities and freedoms found nowhere else.

By annually and accurately telling the story of the Holocaust and honoring those who died, we help ensure future generations know what can happen if hatred, bigotry and indifference are left unchecked and unchallenged. Finally, listening to the stories of survivors and liberators helps reaffirm what's best in our national culture. It serves as a touchstone for counting our blessings, enduring our hardships, remembering the ultimate sacrifices of others, and the role we as servicemembers play in guaranteeing the dignity and self-worth of all humanity.

Sirens will not go off in America this year on Yom Hashoah to remember those who died. But communities across this great land will still pause with their own ceremonies to honor those who died and listen to first-person accounts from survivors and liberators. If you're unable to attend a somber observance, take some personal time to reflect and remember. Read a book or see a movie about the Holocaust to sharpen your knowledge of this horrific time in world history. Think about how you can help to eliminate hatred, bigotry and indifference, especially in the society we protect and serve.