A 24-hour reading of the names of those who died in the Holocaust was followed by a memorial service on College Green yesterday evening in honor of Holocaust Remembrance Day. Jewish studies scholar Alex Grobman wrapped up the day with a lecture on historical accuracy in Holocaust studies.
Members of Hillel's Penn Campus Holocaust Education Committee, which organized the event, found the two-day memorial to be a great success.
"All the readers came," said Engineering freshman and Holocaust Education Committee member Andrew Schissler. "I thought it was beautiful to see various students from different backgrounds show up."
"I thought [the lecture] was really interesting, particularly with the recent event surrounding [Mel] Gibson's father's denial of the historical accounts surrounding the Holocaust," Schissler said. "Holocaust denial is really an issue that needs to be addressed now."
"Obviously, remembering the Holocaust isn't limited to these two days in the year," Schissler added. "But I think we definitely were able to bring some attention to some issues surrounding the Holocaust."
Around 100 students participated in the reading of names, including Muslim Students Association board member Amir Memon.
"I thought as far as the whole Holocaust remembrance [was concerned], it was very rewarding to be part of it," said the College and Wharton sophomore, who arrived at 7 a.m. yesterday morning to read names for nearly half an hour. "This past summer, I went to Poland. I visited the concentration camps in Auschwitz, and obviously it was such a powerful experience that memories still remain. When Holocaust Remembrance Day came up, I felt the need to pay tribute to the lives that were lost in this tragic event in history."
College freshman and Holocaust Education Committee member Tracey Liebman also found the day to be rewarding.
"I think that the day went really nicely," Liebman said. "People definitely noticed as they walked down Locust Walk and on the College Green. I felt it was a great way to recognize the Holocaust victims and to let people become more aware of the day."
However, not all students walking down Locust Walk were aware of why the names were being read.
"That would explain some things," Engineering freshman Daiwei Mu said when told that yesterday was Holocaust Remembrance Day. "I couldn't really hear [what the readers were reading]. I had no idea. Unfortunately, I'm not very well versed in these things. ... I don't necessarily think that [the Holocaust Education Committee] had to advertise [the reading vigil], but if they tried [to advertise], then I didn't hear about it."
Even students who were aware of the proceedings disputed its effectiveness.
"It didn't seem very serious at all," said a College sophomore, who asked to remain anonymous. "No one was listening [to the readers at the podium]. They were more interested in sunbathing."
Yet College junior and Holocaust Education Committee Co-Chair Blair Kaminsky disagreed.
"I think it went really well," Kaminsky said, noting that informational displays were a useful complement to the reading vigil. "A lot of people stopped by during the day, which is really important. ... I'm really glad we had this chance to teach the Penn community about the Holocaust in symbolic and concrete ways."
