Lessons from violence

 

Students and staff at Shawnigan are preparing for a sombre but enlightening experience.

 

Questions about morality and the human condition will be probed as several schools join Shawnigan's annual Holocaust and Genocide Symposium on Friday, March 27th.

 

Organized in partnership with the Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre, the event will offer eyewitness testimony from survivors as well as multimedia presentations from academic experts. A static display will also give insights into Vancouver's 'Schindler Jews.'

 

"It's extremely important to receive education on genocide" says event organizer Roland Borsato, who also points out that, as time passes, we have fewer opportunities to hear firsthand accounts from holocaust survivors. Robbie Waisman an Auschwitz survivor, will provide this year's keynote address, while Dr. Jay Eidelman, Professor of Holocaust Studies at the University of British Columbia, will offer a historical perspective.

 

Borsato also stresses the contemporary relevance of the topic, knowing that students today sometimes struggle to make a connection with events from 70 years ago. "The holocaust was a human tragedy that we must not forget. However, since that time there have been upwards of 50 million people lost by acts of genocide, and it continues to this very day. We live in a privileged society, but that doesn't mean these tragedies aren't still occurring elsewhere."

 

After the presentations and the screening of a documentary film, Dr. Adara Goldberg , Education Director at the Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre, will moderate a panel discussion, giving the audience a chance to interact and engage. For those watching on livestream, questions will also be fielded via twitter.

 

Around 400 students from Shawnigan, Brentwood College, Dwight School Canada and Queen Margaret's are expected to attend this year's event in the Hugh Wilkinson Theatre. A large-scale Symposium is already being planned for 2016 to coincide with Shawnigan's Centennial.

 
See also www.shawnigan.ca/symposium2015

– Jon Zacks