Photo By Staff Sgt. Mike Hagburg | Multi-National Battle Group East is a U.S.- led unit, commanded by Brig. Gen. Al...... read more read more
CAMP BONDSTEEL, Kosovo - Multinational Battle Group East Soldiers on Camp Bondsteel took time to reflect on the Holocaust, April 13, during the annual Days of Remembrance commemoration.
Using posters, maps and videos prepared by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Camp Bondsteel's Equal Opportunity Office set up a "walk through time" so that people could learn about the Holocaust.
"The purpose is to remember the Jewish people who were persecuted 70 years ago, to not keep silent about it and to not forget about it," said Sgt. 1st Class Lori Johnson, Moorhead, Minn., MNBG E's Equal Opportunity advisor. "Not only the Jewish people, but any group of people who were persecuted because they were different."
The posters charted the history of the persecution, deportation and extermination of Jews and others beginning in 1933. People affected also included the disabled, Freemasons, Jehovah's Witnesses, Polish civilians, Romani, and Soviet prisoners of war.
Sgt. Maj. Alvin Zimmerman, West Fargo, N.D., said the posters were well done and very informative.
"We're hoping that people educate themselves about what happened during the Holocaust and that they remember the suffering," said Johnson. "From the statistics that we have, 11 million people were persecuted and we just don't want anyone to forget that."
Sgt. Dale Wasness, West Fargo, N.D., said that seeing the exhibit was a learning experience. "I found out a lot of information about the Holocaust I didn't know before," he said.
The Days of Remembrance is the United States' annual commemoration of the Holocaust and is marked on U.S. military bases worldwide, said Johnson. The national Days of Remembrance ceremony will be held in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda, April 15. Gen. David Petraeus, commander of U.S. Central Command, is scheduled to speak.
The maps displayed at the commemoration on Camp Bondsteel demonstrated that even the Balkans were touched by the Holocaust: there were at least six concentration camps in Yugoslavia in World War II. The "walk through time" was an eye-opener, said Capt. Jerod Tufte, Dawson, N.D.
"It's a good way to remember that evil has happened quite recently in the world," he said. "We need to always be on guard."
| Date Taken: | 04.13.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 04.14.2010 03:20 |
| Story ID: | 48118 |
| Location: | CAMP BONDSTEEL, ZZ |
| Web Views: | 290 |
| Downloads: | 248 |
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