At the core of our annual program is the testimony of an individual who personally witnessed the horror that was the Holocaust. The speaker in 2001, Alter Wiener, was born in Poland. As a young boy, he had to identify the body of his father, shot by the Germans. He later endured five camps. Yet, he also saw some good, such as the German woman who helped to keep him alive by smuggling food to him.
At Oregon State University, we have observed Holocaust Memorial Week every year since 1987.This program grows from the belief that educational institutions can do much to combat prejudice of all kinds, and to foster respect for the diversity that is America, by promoting an awareness of the Holocaust, perhaps the most horrific historical indicator of the high cost of prejudice. It is particularly important to teach young people about the Holocaust, so that coming generations will not forget the lessons that a preceding one learned at such cost. This emphasis recalls the motto of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum: "For the dead and the living, we must bear witness."
