Prof. Dan Michman

The Unprecedented Nature of the Holocaust and its Unique Features: Some Reflections - Part II

Up until now we reviewed some aspects of the unprecedented and unique nature of the Holocaust. In this part we will further explore those qualities, as well as others that have precedents in human history, and the implications of both. Why is it important to try to discern what is new to the consciousness of people during the Shoah?  Perhaps most saliently, understanding how events unfolded and how they were perceived goes to the heart of any discussion about response during the Holocaust –... Continue reading

The Unprecedented Nature of the Holocaust and its Unique Features: Some Reflections - Part I

One can probably say about every historical event that it has elements that are rooted in the past and similarities with past events, and at the same time has elements that are new and unprecedented.  Of course, the proportions of old and new, differ from event to event.  For example, World War I, is regarded by most historians as the first modern war because of the new technologies used, and the up-to-that-time unprecedented scale of carnage.  Yet some of the modern aspects we associate... Continue reading

Upholding Honesty and Integrity. A Summary of the Developments in the Wake of the Video Clip Screened at the 5th World Holocaust Forum

In early February 2020, Yad Vashem issued a media release from the undersigned—head of the International Institute of Holocaust Research at Yad Vashem—containing a clarification about factual inaccuracies and deficiencies in the illustrative videos shown at an event at Yad Vashem on 23 January 2020, concerning remembering of the Holocaust and fighting the new antisemitism. The clarification, and the regret and apology that it expressed about the mishap that had occurred, set in motion a... Continue reading

Clarification regarding the videos presented during the Fifth World Holocaust Forum  

Two weeks ago, on January 23, a major international event took place at Yad Vashem at the initiative of The World Holocaust Forum Foundation. This important event sought to strengthen Holocaust memory and to promote action to confront the recent worrying tide of antisemitic incidents. Unfortunately, the short films that accompanied the event, and especially the film that was meant briefly to present the key points of World War II and the Holocaust, included a number of inaccuracies that... Continue reading

Yad Vashem historians respond to the joint statement of the Governments of Poland and Israel concerning the revision of the January 26, 2018, amendment to Poland’s Act on the Institute of National Remembrance

The June 27, 2018, announcement regarding the Government of Poland’s intention to revise the amendment to the controversial Act on the Institute of National Remembrance stirred hope that a positive development and a step in the right direction were at hand. However, an examination of the joint statement by the Governments of Poland and Israel raises many questions both about the legal statute as approved and about assertions pertaining to historical aspects of the topic in the joint statement... Continue reading

The Jewish Refugee Problem 1933-1945: Reconsidered

Some 25 years ago, the issue of the Jewish refugees during the Nazi period occupied a relatively central place in Holocaust research. Although the topic did not disappear completely, Holocaust research in the years afterward increasingly focused on the persecutors and the mass murder during the “Final Solution.” The fall of communism in Eastern Europe and the opening of the archives there further accelerated this process. With additional insights gained since then in terms of Holocaust... Continue reading

David Bankier’s Path in Holocaust Research

“Despite the Importance and Centrality of Antisemitism, It Cannot Serve as the Exclusive Explanation of Murder and Murderers” David Bankier, Professor of Holocaust History at the Institute of Contemporary Jewry, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, head of the International Institute for Holocaust Research and holder of the John Najmann Chair at Yad Vashem, passed away on February 25, 2010. This is a great loss not only to his family, to Yad Vashem and the Hebrew University, to his friends... Continue reading