A Feb. 2 news story reported that Israel's decision to publicize graphic video footage of the aftermath of a recent bus bombing -- which included scenes of the charred remains of the bus and the bodies of some of the victims -- is drawing criticism from some quarters for being too graphic about Jewish suffering.
This is reminiscent of a dispute during the Holocaust about whether to publicize the extent to which Jews were being singled out by Hitler.
U.S. and British officials warned Jewish leaders to refrain from emphasizing that Jews were the victims, fearing the Allies would be accused of fighting World War II for the sake of the Jews. A meeting of the U.S., British and Soviet foreign ministers in Moscow in October 1943 issued a statement threatening postwar punishment for Nazi war crimes against conquered populations. It mentioned "French, Dutch, Belgian or Norwegian hostages . . . Cretan peasants . . . the people of Poland" -- but not Europe's Jews.
The Roosevelt administration's Office of War Information also instructed its staff to avoid mentioning that Jews were the main victims of Nazi atrocities. Coverage of the Nazi mass murders would be "confused and misleading if it appears to be simply affecting the Jewish people," the staff was told. Even the president's 1944 message commemorating the first anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto revolt did not mention the Jews.
Whatever one's view of Israel's decision, one lesson from the Holocaust should be beyond dispute: The argument for playing down Jewish victimization is completely discredited.
RAFAEL MEDOFF
Director
edit to add link
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A20474-2004Feb6.htmlThe David S. Wyman Institute
For Holocaust Studies