Why We Teach

Throughout this season of Chosen For What?, we've explored how the Holocaust continues to shape the lives of survivors, their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. In this final episode, host Tommy Schnurmacher turns his attention to an essential question: Why do we continue to teach these stories, and why does Holocaust and genocide education matter more than ever?

The episode brings together educators, descendants of survivors, authors, and advocates who have dedicated themselves to preserving memory and sharing history with future generations. Neal Dalzell discusses how today's students engage with difficult conversations about prejudice, racism, genocide, and human behavior. Stacy Seltzer reflects on what it means to pass her family's legacy on to her own daughter, while Mollie Bowman speaks about the urgent need to preserve survivor stories as the number of living Holocaust survivors continues to decline.

You will also hear from Judith Wertheim and Willie Handler, both of whom have found powerful ways to keep family histories alive through education, public speaking, and writing. The episode concludes with an inspiring message from Dorothy Goldwin about the impact one person can have by sharing their story.

Chosen For What? is brought to you by the Foundation for Genocide Education, a Canadian non-profit organization dedicated to ensuring that every student understands the history and lessons of the Holocaust and other genocides. To learn more about their work, or to make a donation, please visit GenEd.org.

*Note: You will hear the terms 2G and 3G used frequently in this podcast. This refers to second-generation and third-generation descendants of Holocaust survivors.