55 years post-Holocaust, I find
55 years post-Holocaust, I find the relationship between Germany and Judaism, between Germans and Jews--the latter predictably absent from the country of the former--an intriguing wash of contradiction and discomfort. There is yet a current of lingering mistrust among some Jewish people towards Germany and its citizens. At the same time, if there are people who remain ignorant of the Holocaust, I can't think too many of them live in Germany, where history classes explore the issue with an apologetic zeal. But I've also met Germans who resent being prejudged as evil or who see the latest monument and think millions of dollars (or deutschmarks) might better aid people in the world who are still in peril, rather than honour those who died from it.
On the subject, today's Saturday Night magazine looks at a new phenomenon in Germany. Philo-Semitism, the anti-anti-Semitism, proscribes love for all things Jewish, even in absence of any real Jews. Worth a peek.
Previously: A flood of reaction against
Subsequently: Yes, the force was strong
Comments