Reckoning With Genocide
Inheritance is the story of Monika Hertwig, the daughter of Nazi mass murderer Amon Goeth, and her meeting with Helen Jonas, who was enslaved by Goeth. The two women's raw, emotional meeting shows the continuing effects of Nazi horrors on human souls.
How can you ensure that the Holocaust is not forgotten? How can you create healing opportunities for the descendants of victims and perpetrators?
- There is a Jewish tradition of writing an Ethical Will, a document that spells out the values you hold dear and by which you hope your children live. The document creates a legacy of values rather than a legacy of property. Write an Ethical Will for future generations and share it with your loved ones or your community.
- Provide ways in your community for survivors of genocide to share their stories.
- Join with people or organizations in your community that are engaged in anti-bias education or in combating prejudice or hate.
- Create local opportunities for reconciliation, for example, special religious services focused on reconciliation or healing community rifts, government declarations of apology, mediated meetings between segments of the community in conflict, and so on.
- Find out what your local school district teaches about World War II and the Nazi genocide of Jews, Gypsies, gay people, people with disabilities, and others. Work with teachers and administrators to teach about the lasting impact of genocide on the descendants of perpetrators as well as victims.
Get informed about the issues in the film and lead a discussion in your community.
This multimedia resource list, compiled by Susan Conlon and Martha Perry of the Princeton Public Library, provides a range of perspectives on the issues raised by the P.O.V. documentary Inheritance and recommended books and magazine articles about Holocaust Survivors.
