12 | JANUARY 28 • 2021 

VIEWS

stand when we do not accept 
that it is not perfect, and that 
we don’t always get what we 
want. It requires compromise 
and agreeing to uphold the 
outcomes even when we are 
disappointed in them.
Life in Germany was hard 
after WWI. Weimar democ-
racy was fragile and messy. It 
required patience, hard work 
and belief in its value to make 
life better and fair for every-
one. Ultimately, the Germans 
found it too hard to sustain. 
Choosing to scapegoat the 
Jewish people for Germany’s 
ills was easier than taking 
responsibility. Choosing to 
believe propaganda was eas-
ier than seeking the truth. 
Choosing to believe the rhet-
oric that confirmed long-held 
antisemitism was simpler 
than questioning it. Choosing 
authoritarianism over govern-
ment of the people by the peo-

ple for the people was easier. 
Choosing to boycott Jewish-
owned stores and silently 
accepting the Nuremberg 
laws was easier than standing 
up for one’s neighbors and 
friends. Choosing to accept 
the notion that the entire 
Jewish people should pay for 
the crime of one young man 
without considering the injus-
tice of that idea was simply 
easier. The violence and mur-
der of Kristallnacht happened 
because people made it hap-
pen. It was a choice.
I have the great honor of 
working with children and 
their teachers to instill the val-
ues upon which these lessons 
are built. Through our teacher 
workshops and museum edu-
cation, we at the Holocaust 
Memorial Center teach about 
the values of compassion and 
speaking out when we see 
injustice. Through the exam-

ples of the Righteous Among 
the Nations we teach that 
choosing to fight hatred is 
always the better choice, even 
when it is hard and dangerous. 
We teach that history does 
not happen; we make it hap-
pen. We can make a differ-
ence. We can make choices 
that matter. We can influence 
others to make ethical choices 
and stand up for what is right. 
But it is not just educators 

who must teach these lessons. 
It is all of us. Despite the 
pandemic, despite living in 
a broken and hurting world 
(or maybe because of it), it 
is more important than ever 
that we stand up for all people, 
fight for democracy and value 
our neighbors. There is no 
Other. There is only Us. 

Ruth Bergman is the director of 
education at the Holocaust Memorial 
Center in Farmington Hills.

Academy, the day camp, the 
nursery and the Berman 
Theater). 
Let’s move forward. 

— Harvey Bronstein 

Southfield

Heschel and King 
had Zionism in 
Common

Marc Jacobs describes many 
aspects of the connection 
between Rabbi Heschel and 
Dr. King. (“This year for 
Martin Luther King Day — 
Be a Heschel”). Curiously, he 
ignored one of the most obvi-
ous connections between the 
two men, their Zionism.
Rabbi Heschel said: 

“However it was not justice 
as an abstract principle which 
stirred us so deeply [in 1967]. 
Auschwitz is in our veins. It 
abides in the throbbing of 
our hearts. It burns in our 
imagination. It trembles in 
our conscience. We, the gen-
eration that witnessed the 
Holocaust, should stand by 
calmly when rulers proclaim 
their intention to bring about 
a new Holocaust? … One of 
the insights from the great 
crisis of May 1967, is the 
deep personal involvement 
of every Jew in the existence 
of Israel. It is not a matter 
of philanthropy or general 
charity but of spiritual iden-
tification. It is such personal 

relationship to Israel upon 
which one’s dignity as a Jew is 
articulated.”
Of course, Rabbi Heschel’s 
comrade in arms, Dr. King, 
famously articulated his 
Zionism at Harvard shortly 
before his death in the wise 
and prescient words cited by 
Congressman John Lewis in 
an op-ed in the San Francisco 
Chronicle commemorating 
Martin Luther King Day in 
January 2002: “When people 
criticize Zionists, they mean 
Jews; you’re talking anti-Sem-
itism.”
Dr. King also said: “Peace 
for Israel means security, and 
we must stand with all of our 
might to protect its right to 

exist, its territorial integrity. I 
see Israel, and [I] never mind 
saying it, as one of the great 
outposts of democracy in the 
world and a marvelous exam-
ple of what can be done, how 
desert land almost can be 
transformed into an oasis of 
brotherhood and democracy. 
Peace for Israel means secu-
rity and that security must be 
a reality.”
Since readers of the Jewish 
News are asked to emulate 
“the spirit of Dr. King’s and 
Rabbi Heschel’s friendship,” 
then their Zionism should 
be proudly mentioned — not 
omitted.

— Richard Sherman

Margate, Fla.

LESSONS continued from page 10

LETTERS continued from page 10