Holocaust writing contest: Lorelai Taylor, first place high school division winner
Sophomore Lorelai Taylor, of East Valley High School, took first place in the high school division of the 17th-annual Eva Lassman Memorial Writing Contest with her essay “The Danger of Indifference.”
‘The Danger of Indifference’
Slaughtered, annihilated, and decimated are a few ways to describe what happened to six million of the world’s Jewish population during one of the most horrific events in history. The mass genocide and murder of millions of Jews by the German Nazis during World War II show the darker side of humanity. Hitler is well known across the world for his twisted view of society, his methodical rule of Germany, and his movement to eradicate the Jewish population. World War II negatively impacted countries around the world but is an especially traumatic memory for the Jewish community. Upon review of the available historical sources, it is apparent that portions of the United States government were indifferent to the events leading up to and during the Holocaust. Indifference, the killer of humanity, is what brings humiliation upon us today. Select individuals and departments in the United States government knowingly prevented the immigration of Jewish refugees during World War II and prevented information about the persecution of Jews from reaching the people. In an attempt to keep protests and uprisings in the United States at bay, the United States Government contributed to the deaths of thousands of Jews by not taking action during World War II.
Elected into office in 1933 amid the Great Depression, Franklin Delanor Roosevelt would later be viewed as a friend of the Jews. Roosevelt was the first leader to publicly disapprove of Hitler’s rule and the persecution of the Jews. Roosevelt enabled women and men of any religion to work in the federal government and hired more Jews than any president before him. However, behind him were officials who feared information concerning the Holocaust reaching the public. Roosevelt was prevented from making other statements about the Holocaust for fear that it would make the persecution in Europe worse or create even greater tension in the United States. Focused on improving foreign trade, Secretary of State Cordell Hull announced in December of 1933 that the United States government would not be intervening with the affairs of its western hemisphere neighbors (Jewish Virtual Library). Six years later in the course of the second world war, the SS St. Louis, a German refugee ship, requested to dock in the United States. The State Department, along with the President, were telegraphed by the ship’s passengers. The State Department replied, denying the ship entry to the United States. Hull claimed that the passengers would be unable to obtain visas due to the filled immigration quotas and the lack of return addresses. Hundreds of Jews were forced back to Germany, many of whom would become victims of the Holocaust.
Transparently anti-Semitic and anti-immigration, the State Department enforced various unnecessary obstacles for visa approval. The Johnson-Reed Act, passed by Congress in 1924, set visa quotas influenced by the growing influence of eugenics. In 1930, coinciding with the start of the Great Depression, President Herbert Hoover enforced the prohibition of any immigrants “likely to become a public charge” (Holocaust Encyclopedia). Immigrants and refugees were placed on waiting lists years long. Consequently, in 1932 there was a greater number of people leaving the United States than entering. The obstacles that severely limited the number of Jews allowed into the United States enabled the State Department to make false claims backed by real numbers. The State Department claimed that a low number of Jews actually sought safety in the United States. The number of Jewish immigrants allowed into the U.S. was shockingly low, however, the low immigration numbers were not due to the Jew’s lack of interest in America, but caused by the restrictions purposely put in place. Thousands of Jews were simply turned away outright or denied due to their inability to obtain a visa because of the numerous obstacles put in their way by the State Department. This intentional policy of restricting Jewish immigration indirectly resulted in the hundreds of thousands of deaths of Jews who could have otherwise found a safe haven in the United States.
The 1930s and 1940s were a time of immense anti-Semitism in the United States. In 1938, “Two-thirds of Americans believed German Jews were either “entirely” or “partly” to blame for their own persecution” (Americans and the Holocaust). On January 16th, 1944, Henry Morgenthau, United States Secretary of Treasury, documented that the State Department had been actively withholding information about Jewish persecution from the public and had also knowingly not taken action to ensure the safety of the European Jews. The indifference shown by the State Department and the United States Government to the hundreds of Jews slaughtered daily during the Holocaust is without a doubt an utter humiliation to this country. Jews were abused, slaughtered, and worked to death in labor and concentration camps. Either shot, hung, or killed in gas chambers, death was omnipresent and hope was fleeting. The State Department and other individuals including Cordell Hull and even Henry Ford played major roles in spreading anti-Semitic beliefs and preventing the U.S. from taking action. The persecution of Jews was beyond unjust and one of the biggest sores of human history. Unfortunately, anti-Semitism led to the indifference of the United States during the Holocaust. Hundreds of thousands of innocent Jews could have been saved if the United States had simply interceded upon confirmation of the Jew’s persecution. “Indifference to me is the epitome of evil” (Elie Wiesel).
Indifference is a constant in society, one of the many blemishes of humanity. Indifference is shown to people with mental or physical disabilities, members of the LGBTQ+ community, Asians, black people, women, and even still, Jews. To me moving beyond indifference can be as simple as treating those around you with equality to supporting a social movement seeking equality from society. As a white woman, I will never be able to know how it truly feels to be ignored based on the color of one’s skin, one’s learning ability, or whom one loves. However, as a woman I do know how it feels to have your ideas looked over just to be repeated by the boy next to you and I know how it feels to have your own body objectified based on society’s definition of your sex. Indifference takes numerous forms and it would be wrong to say that I have not shown indifference at some point in my lifetime. It is instinctual to take the easy path, to ignore what does not affect you or your family, but life is not easy. Recognizing indifference in yourself, society, and around you is the first step to moving beyond indifference, to moving beyond the evil that one can do. In my life, I strive to identify the indifference that takes place daily around me. I strive to stand alongside those being persecuted to ensure equality: “To be indifferent to that suffering is what makes the human being inhuman” (“American Rhetoric: Elie Wiesel – The Perils of Indifference”).
The indifference of the United States during World War II is baffling. A country known for its open arms towards immigrants and refugees, taking pride in its diversity, closed its doors during a time of unjust persecution resulting in mass murder. The Holocaust is one of the darkest times in history with the persecution of not only Jews but people of any “imperfection” in Hitler’s eyes. The horror of the Holocaust still lives on in the lives of survivors and their families, and anti-Semitism still deeply affects the Jewish population today. This horrible incident should stand as a stark reminder to speak out against hate and indifference towards marginalized people. Indifference today takes different forms, from being a bystander to not letting your voice be heard. By taking the step to recognize indifference in your own life you are taking a step to prevent the persecution of others.