Upcoming Events
Tuesday, June 9 | "Real Nazis of the Northwest - 1933-1941" with Knute Berger
12:00-1:00pm PT
Nazism in the Northwest is not a new phenomenon. You’ve heard of the heroic UW rowers called “the Boys in the Boat” who beat the Nazis at the Berlin Olympics. This talk will introduce you to another group Knute Berger calls the Fascists in the Forest. We will look at the pre-World War II era in Seattle and the major players in local and West Coast fascism, focusing on representatives of the Third Reich, their propaganda efforts here, and the activities of William Dudley Pelley who headquartered his 1936 presidential campaign in Washington State in his bid to become the “American Hitler.”
The talk is based on a series of stories Knute Berger wrote while researching our region’s political past for Crosscut and for his KCTS9 video series, “Mossback’s Northwest.”
No pre-registration needed - just click the link below and join live on JUNE 9!
JOIN ON FACEBOOK LIVE ON JUNE 9
Join us for our weekly Lunch-and-Learn series to hear children and grandchildren of Holocaust survivors, notable speakers on timely issues, and historical experts.
Upcoming Presentations
Lunch-and-Learns will be offered at the same time every Tuesday. A separate link will be posted for each event.
Tuesday, June 16 | 12:00-1:00 PT | Race, Equity, and Holocaust Education
A conversation with three changemakers who are advocates of Holocaust education and who are working in Washington's school system to raise awareness of systemic racism and close the education and opportunity gap for students of color.
- Tanisha Brandon-Felder Ed.D, Director of Equity and Family Engagement, Shoreline School District
- E-chieh Lin, Director of Diversity and Community and Director of Hiring, University Preparatory School
- Angela Jones, CEO Washington STEM
Tuesday, June 23 | 12:00-1:00 PT | Barbara Adler West, Legacy Speaker
The daughter of Holocaust survivor Steve Adler, Barbara shares her family's story of living in Berlin in the 1930's and eventually finding refuge in England. After her grandfather was arrested and imprisoned in Sachsenhausen in 1938, the family desperately looked for avenues to escape Germany. Only 9 years old, Barbara's father Steve was sent alone on the Kindertransport (children's transport) to England. Kindertransports were organized with British government sanction, giving refuge to approximately 10,000 mostly Jewish children from Nazi occupied countries.
Barbara is an attorney, a mother, and recently started a non-profit organization to help folks in need with elder law. She is also the co-author, with Steve, of a 2017 book about families and aging, “When I Need Your Help I’ll Let You Know.” Barbara is very proud to share her father’s story as a Legacy Speaker in the Center’s Speakers Bureau.
Past Presentations
Catch up on the presentations you missed!
June 2 | Propaganda vs. News
We are bombarded with theories, opinions, and a rapidly changing news cycle. While we have exposure to more media now than ever, we are faced with many of the same challenges of previous generations - how to evaluate and think critically about the news and media we are consuming. What does it mean to be news-literate? John Silva, Director of Education at The News Literacy Project will share tips for being reliably informed. Holocaust Center for Humanity docents Marcy Bloom and Carl Shutoff will take a deep dive into a few examples of propaganda during the Holocaust that are part of the Holocaust Center for Humanity's collection. You can watch the program HERE.
May 26 | "Implications of COVID-19 for Atrocity Prevention" with Dr. James Waller
While COVID-19’s impact continues on a global scale – economically, socially, politically, and existentially – it will be particularly felt in deeply divided, fragile, conflict-prone, or at-risk societies. In such societies, it is absolutely vital that policy measures be taken for preventive action before risk escalates to the point of mass atrocity. This presentation will review some of those pressure points related to governance, economic conditions, and social fragmentation. The pandemic, and its potential to serve as a trigger for mass violence, makes our shared work of atrocity prevention more urgent than ever. You can watch the program HERE.
Dr. James Waller is Cohen Professor of Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Keene State College (NH). He also serves as Director of Academic Programs for the Auschwitz Institute for the Prevention of Genocide and Mass Atrocities, a leading international NGO in the field. He is the author of six books, most notably Becoming Evil: How Ordinary People Commit Genocide and Mass Atrocity (Oxford University Press, 2007). His newest book, due out later this year from Oxford University Press, is A Troubled Sleep: Risk and Resilience in Contemporary Northern Ireland.
Thank you to our community partners for this week's program: The Henry M. Jackson Foundation | The Ray Wolpow Institute for the Study of the Holocaust, Genocide, and Crimes Against Humanity at Western Washington University | Washington State University History Department | Humanities Alliance at Everett Community College | Temple B'nai Torah | Temple De Hirsch Sinai | Temple Beth Shalom | Jconnect Seattle | Moishe House Seattle
May 19, 2020 | Michal Lotzkar, daughter of Polish Holocaust survivor Arieh Engelberg, who survived numerous labor camps before eventually finding refuge in Israel after the Holocaust, shares her family's story of survival, determination, and luck. You can watch the program HERE.
May 12, 2020 | NAZI HUNTERS with author Neal Bascomb | In 1945, at the end of World War II, Adolf Eichmann, the head of operations for the Nazis’ Final Solution, walked into the mountains of Germany and vanished from view. Sixteen years later, an elite team of spies captured him at a bus stop in Argentina and smuggled him to Israel, resulting in one of the century’s most important trials, one that cemented the Holocaust in the public imagination. Author Neal Bascomb turns his investigative research into a captivating narrative in his award-winning books Hunting Eichmann and Nazi Hunters. Special thanks to our partner The Queen Anne Book Company for supporting this program. You can watch the program HERE.
May 5, 2020 | Clarice Wilsey: Letters from a Dachau Liberator | Clarice Wilsey, daughter of Army physician Captain David Wilsey, M.D. who was one of 27 doctors who entered Dachau concentration camp at liberation, shares her father's story. You can watch the program HERE.
April 28, 2020 | Betsy Touriel-Kapner | Betsy, the daughter of Austrian Holocaust survivors, tells the stories of her parents' escape from Austria to Bolivia. You can watch Betsy's presentation HERE.
April 21, 2020 - Yom Hashoah: Holocaust Remembrance Day | Special Memorial Program with Survivor George Elbaum and introduction by Rabbi Daniel Weiner of Temple De Hirsch Sinai and Dee Simon, the Baral Family Executive Director of the Holocaust Center for Humanity. You can watch the program HERE.
April 14, 2020 - Breeze Dahlberg - Granddaughter of Hungarian Auschwitz survivor Vera Frank Federman, Breeze shares her grandmother's story. You can watch Breeze Dahlberg's presentation HERE.
April 7, 2020 - Naomi Newman - The daughter of two survivors, Naomi tells the stories of her parents from primary source documents and historical records. You can watch Naomi Newman's presentation HERE.
March 31, 2020 - Arik Cohen, the grandson of four Holocaust survivors, shares their incredible stories of survival and luck. You can watch Arik's presentation HERE.
Every other Wednesday from 1pm-2pm PST! Teachers can earn 1 clock hour on selected discussions.
Join engaging and highly interactive discussions of select popular Holocaust texts. Open to teachers, students, parents and anyone else.
Come prepared with questions and/or ideas you'd like to discuss, or just sit in and join the discussion.
Discussions are led by:
Paul Regelbrugge is the Professional Development and Curriculum Coordinator for the Holocaust Center for Humanity. Previously, following a career as an attorney in his native Detroit and Chicago, Paul taught for 14 years in Chicago, Buffalo, Spokane and, most recently, Kent. He is also the author of The Yellow Star House: The Remarkable Story of One Boy's Survival in a Protected House in Hungary (2019).
Kate Boris-Brown has been a supporter and volunteer at the Holocaust Center since 2015, assisting in the library and traveling with the Center to Poland, Austria, Czech Republic, and Israel. Books are her passion, especially books on the Holocaust, the refugee experience and Russian history. Her preferred vacation activity is scouting European bookstores for Holocaust and history publications. She has a B.A. in Literature, Graduate studies in Russian Language and post-retirement, earned UW Professional and Continuing Education Certificates in three writing programs: Nonfiction Writing, Literary Fiction I and II.
Register below and a link to join the discussion will be sent to you. Questions? Please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
DIARY OF ANNE FRANK - Graphic Adaptation, Diary, or Play
Wednesday, June 10 | 1pm-2pm PST
With special guest local scholar Laureen Nussbaum
Paul Regelbrugge will lead a discussion with scholar Laureen Nussbaum and participants on the timeless award-winning story presented in multiple formats. The remarkable spirit of Anne Frank continues to inspire readers of all ages. Discussion will include the different versions of the diary, various presentations of Anne's diary, and the lasting impact her story has had on generations. Laureen Nussbaum, a globally-recognized expert on Anne Frank's writings and a personal acquaintance in her youth of the Frank family, will join us to add her perspective.
Teachers can earn one clock hour for participating in this session.
REGISTER TO JOIN DISCUSSION ON ANNE FRANK
When Time Stopped: A Memoir of My Father's War and What Remains by Ariana Neumann
Wednesday, June 24 | 1pm-2pm PST
In this remarkably moving memoir Ariana Neumann dives into the secrets of her father’s past: years spent hiding in plain sight in war-torn Berlin, the annihilation of dozens of family members in the Holocaust, and the courageous choice to build anew.
When Ariana’s father Hans died, he left Ariana a small box filled with letters, diary entries, and other memorabilia. Ten years later Ariana finally summoned the courage to have the letters translated, and she began reading. What she discovered launched her on a worldwide search that would deliver indelible portraits of a family loving, finding meaning, and trying to survive amid the worst that can be imagined. Discussion led by Kate Boris-Brown.
REGISTER TO JOIN DISCUSSION ON "WHEN TIME STOPPED"
Title to be announced!
Wednesday, July 8 | 1pm-2pm PST
Discussion led by Paul Regelbrugge
The Choice: Embrace the Impossible by Dr. Edith Eva Eger
Wednesday, July 22 | 1pm-2pm PST
Selected by Bill Gates as one of 5 favorite books for summer 2020. At the age of sixteen, Edith Eger was sent to Auschwitz. Hours after her parents were killed, Nazi officer Dr. Josef Mengele, forced Edie to dance for his amusement and her survival. Edie was pulled from a pile of corpses when the American troops liberated the camps in 1945.
Edie spent decades struggling with flashbacks and survivor’s guilt, determined to stay silent and hide from the past. Thirty-five years after the war ended, she returned to Auschwitz and was finally able to fully heal and forgive the one person she’d been unable to forgive—herself.
Edie weaves her remarkable personal journey with the moving stories of those she has helped heal. She explores how we can be imprisoned in our own minds and shows us how to find the key to freedom. The Choice is a life-changing book that will provide hope and comfort to generations of readers. Discussion led by Kate Boris-Brown.
REGISTER TO JOIN DISCUSSION ON "THE CHOICE"
RESCHEDULED! Fact, Opinion, & Propaganda: Empowering Students to be Reliably Informed | Teacher Workshop | October 29, 2020 | 9:00am - 3:30pm | At the Henry and Sandra Friedman Holocaust Center for Humanity
Lunch provided. 6 Clock Hours. Registration Fee - $25.
Participants will:
- be able to differentiate types of misinformation
- understand how misinformation is created and spreads
- apply digital forensics and fact-checking tools and skills to verify information and debunk misinformation
- connect news literacy to civic engagement and recognizing the standards of quality journalism
- explore current trends in misinformation and conspiracy theories relating to Holocaust denial
Presented by John Silva, NBCT Director of Education for the News Literacy Project.
Funding for this program was made possible, in part, due to a grant from the Tillie and Alfred Shemanski Testamentary Trust.
RESCHEDULED! Fact, Opinion, and Propaganda: What does it mean to be news-literate? | Public Program | Thursday, October 29 | 6:30 - 8:30pm
With special guest speaker, John Silva, Director of Education, News Literacy Project. At the Holocaust Center for Humanity. Registration required. $10.
Participate in a lively discussion about what anyone can do to be more critical about how they engage with news and information. Topics to be discussed include:
- Propaganda and the Holocaust - with educator and presenter Branda Anderson
- What does it mean to be news-literate? 10 skills to be reliably informed - with guest speaker John Silva
"I believe very strongly this is the most hopeful place in the city." - Local Holocaust Survivor Steve Adler
Finding Light in the Darkness - Through stories and artifacts of Washington State Holocaust survivors, the museum’s exhibit engages visitors in this history and challenges them to consider how each person’s actions make a difference.
Visitors to the Holocaust Center can take a Virtual Reality tour of the Anne Frank annex, interact with embedded testimony screens that feature survivors and stories of coming to Seattle, explore artifacts that bring history to life, and learn about local students who are upstanders in their schools and communities.
TICKETS
Open Wednesdays and Sundays | 10am - 4pm
Group Tours & Field Trips by appointment every day except Saturday
At the Henry and Sandra Friedman Holocaust Center for Humanity | 2045 2nd Avenue, Seattle, WA 98121
At the entrance to the Holocaust Center for Humanity are photos of children who experienced the Holocaust. All are survivors who later moved to the Seattle region, with the exception of one. Come visit and learn more about the stories. Photo by Alan Berner, Seattle Times staff photographer.
A bookcase opens to reveal a photograph of the stairs leading to Anne Frank's hiding place in Amsterdam during the Nazi occupation. Explore this feature and learn more about Anne Frank when you visit the Holocaust Center. Photo by Alan Berner, Seattle Times staff photographer.
A memorial to the 6 million Jewish people murdered in the Holocaust and the millions of other victims invites visitors to leave notes, prayers and wishes at the Holocaust Center. Photo by Alan Berner, Seattle Times staff photographer.
Train tracks at the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp in Poland at the Holocaust Center for Humanity. Designed by architects Olson Kundig. Photo by Stefanie Felix.
This exhibit was supported, in part, by 4Culture/King County Lodging Tax and The State of Washington.