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Holocaust Message
Painting Peace
HMD brings documentary, speakers to UM-Dearborn.
HMD graffiti event draws Israel support.
Michael Evers } jewish@edu writer
Chavivah Bluth
K
jewish@edu writer
ochoff Hall at the University of
Michigan-Dearborn was quiet
as the documentary film, Never
a Bystander, about Holocaust survivor Dr.
Irene Butter was screened for an audience of
50-plus students and staff.
The film features scenes of Butter advo-
cating for courage as she speaks in front of
middle-school classes and of her opening
remarks introducing the Dalai Lama for the
Raoul Wallenberg Award at the University of
Michigan. The film also includes a brief clip
from the joint Jewish-Palestinian women's
dialogue group, Zeitouna, that she helped
found. The documentary reinforced Butter's
message of living an empowered life and the
importance of being a survivor to live a more
full life.
"I learned to be a survivor, not a victim,"
Junior David Solomon, Dr. Jamie
Wraight and sophomores Alon
Samuel and Spenser Stevenson
Her story was documented by Neuhaus, a
former health care professional-turned-filmmaker.
Butter told the group. "It's more empowered."
Butter and filmmaker Evelyn Neuhaus spoke
at UM-Dearborn in April during the week of
Yom HaShoah. The Jewish Student Organization,
The award-winning documentary explains the
message of forgiveness, hope, joy and empower-
ment after trauma. The movie was featured in the
2015 San Diego Jewish Film Festival.
Phi Alpha Theta (the National Historical Honors
Society) and the UM-Dearborn VoiceNision
Holocaust Survivor Oral History Archive co-spon-
sored the program.
"This is a great opportunity to learn from
a survivor and so much more," said Dr. Jamie
Wraight, VoiceNision Archive director. "This is a
great event for campus."
Butter's story began in Berlin, where she was
born in 1930. By 1937, her family had moved
to Holland. They remained there until they were
rounded up and sent to Westerbork in 1943, after
the Nazis had invaded Holland and turned the
once-refugee camp into a deportation camp fol-
lowing their invasion in May 1940.
Butter's family remained in Holland until they
were shipped to Bergen-Belsen, where they
remained for 11 months before being transported
to Switzerland in January 1945. On the way to
Switzerland, Butter's father died, and she became
separated from her mother and brother until they
reunited in New York in June 1946.
Following the screening, Butter and Neuhaus
took questions from the audience covering
everything from what was witnessed in the death
camps to how forgiveness and reconciliation have
become an integral part of Butter's work with the
Raoul Wallenberg Award. Butter also spoke of the
transition of learning about the Holocaust among
young Jewish students. She said once she began
to view her own story as one of empowerment
and survival, she was able to shake off a 30-year
silence imposed on her since she arrived in New
York.
"It wasn't until my daughter came home from
eighth grade and asked me to be her visual aide
for a speech she was giving on 'Anti-Semitism,
Nazism and Hitler's Conquest of Western Europe'
that I began talking about my early years,"
she said. "Before that moment, I had largely
remained mum on the subject."
That speech led Butter to openly speak about
the Holocaust among youth, middle school and
college students.
"The whole experience was very
inspiring," said David Solomon,
president of the UM-Dearborn
Jewish Student Organization. "Dr.
Butter remained so positive and
survived so much to pick up her
life and become a professor, to
raise a family and to be forgiving
of society. Her story brings light to
a better future." @
Students express themselves with paint.
W
e all scream for peace, but
when opportunity knocks, how
many of us actually do some-
thing?
Recently, Wayne State University and
Oakland University hosted a group of
world-famous graffiti artists from New York
City for a pro-peace campaign. Known as
Artists4lsrael, the pro-Israel artists encour-
aged students to express their feelings about
the Middle East through a new medium:
graffiti.
Hosted by Students for Israel (SFI) at each
university, the events had an interactive com-
ponent, where students could spray paint on
a giant wall. And each participant received
a special gift from the artists, a personalized
graffiti shirt.
Students from all walks of life flocked to
the art, both as a way of self-expression and
connection to others. For many, graffiti was
both a familiar and beloved medium, while it
was a first-time experience for others. Some
students loved the wall so much they came
back multiple times.
Some painted something dear to them
like a quotation or their name in a foreign
language. For others, the yearning for peace
was more personal, either through a family
connection or a military veteran.
Amidst all the fun, SFI board members
engaged students in a discussion about
Israel. Many were happy to learn this was
a pro-peace event. Some students were
"done" hearing about terrorism. Students
celebrated the hope for peace, while also
learning many surprising facts about Israel.
Others asked when the next event would be.
Many of us have passion in our hearts
for Israel and want to spread the message
of peace, but our fear of rejection overtakes
us, so we remain silent. The SFI students
at Wayne State University and Oakland
University are truly pioneers for the future
in that they do not fear adversity; they wel-
come it. Our goal is to get people to start
talking because fear of rejection only leads
to further ignorance. If we don't talk, who
will? @
Chavivah Bluth of Southfield is a Wayne
Filmmaker Evelyn Neuhaus and Dr.
Irene Butter
34
July 2 • 2015
Michael Evers is a program asso-
State University freshman who served as
ciate for Hillel of Metro Detroit.
vice president of the WSU Students for
One of the graffiti artists
creates an OU shirt.