Holocaust Memory Transformations in Contemporary Contexts: An Introduction

This special issue focuses on transformations in Holocaust memory, examining how historical recollections are reinterpreted and applied in response to present-day events. The vicissitudes of Holocaust memory are an ongoing global phenomenon in which history becomes dynamically interwoven with current affairs. A recent expression of this occurred following the horrifying events in Israel on October 7, 2023. The attack, in which over 1200 Israelis were brutally murdered and more than 240 kidnapped by Hamas, prompted a notable increase in Holocaust references in public and social discourses.

Prominent examples include Israeli ambassador Gilad Erdan donning a yellow Star of David during a speech at the UN Security Council,¹ and US President Joe Biden stating, ‘October 7th … became the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust.’² On numerous instances, politicians referred to Hamas terrorists as Nazis (‘or worse’³). Rival political actors compared IDF soldiers to Nazis,⁴ and Hamas supporters recurrently referred to Gaza as ‘Warsaw.’⁵ A similar phenomenon has occurred during the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, with Putin speaking of the ‘denazification’ of Ukraine,⁶ and Ukrainian politicians referring to Putin as ‘a modern-day Hitler.’⁷

These examples highlight the enduring relevance of Holocaust memory as a benchmark for assessing current events. The spectrum of reactions to this invocation, ranging from full support⁸ through qualified justification⁹ to strong opposition¹⁰ and even outrage,¹¹ underscores the emotional and ethical weight attached to Holocaust memory.

This resurgence in referencing the Holocaust reflects a broader trend in the evolving global narrative of Holocaust memory. Holocaust memory has experienced profound changes since the mid-twentieth century, transitioning from a national trauma¹² to a symbol of radical evil and a foundational element in a global human rights ethos that champions tolerance, diversity, and dignity.¹³ This cosmopolitan memory,¹⁴ which has been standardized in Western Europe, emerged as a benchmark for European Union membership.¹⁵ However, it has at times been perceived in Eastern Europe as a Western imposition, often in conflict with local narratives of suffering under both Nazism and communism.¹⁶ European nations have confronted their Holocaust histories through various approaches, ranging from silence to revisionism, influencing policies and societal attitudes alike.¹⁷ This special issue explores these evolving dynamics of Holocaust memory, spanning cultural, political, educational, literary, and social media spheres.

The issue is inspired by a study conducted by Novis-Deutsch et al.,¹⁸ which examined shifts in Holocaust memory in Poland, Hungary, Germany, England, and Spain. The research focused on the public-political, educational, and social media domains between 2020–2022, analyzing political statements, media coverage, interviews with Holocaust educators, and tweets.

In this introduction, we outline six key characteristics of the transformations in Holocaust memory stemming from the study we conducted. We then note how each article in this special issue relates to these characteristics, offering a deeper insight into the multifaceted nature of Holocaust memory in contemporary contexts.

1.	Holocaust memory is a dynamic interplay of past and present.

Collective memory, especially regarding the Holocaust, is continuously restructured to make sense of current times, influencing policies and societal beliefs. A prominent example that surfaced in our study is how various countries referenced the Holocaust during the COVID-19 pandemic. The heated debates about vaccinations and movement restrictions often referred to experiments conducted during the Holocaust or in the concentration camps, using the past to make sense of (and often oppose) present policies. In doing so, they also offered new interpretations of the past. This process underscores the significance of how societies remember and co-construct their collective past in relation to the Holocaust.

2.	Holocaust memory varies significantly across public-political, educational, and social media domains, yet the memories remain interconnected.

In political and media discourses, Holocaust discussions are often reactive, influenced by political agendas. On social media, they frequently tie in with contemporary issues. In contrast, educators tend to approach the topic more proactively, emphasizing scholarly research and a historical understanding of the Holocaust. This is particularly evident in Eastern Europe, where educators’ views often differ from official government narratives, showing the complex interplay of historical awareness, current politics, and personal motivations in shaping collective remembrance. Although the medium shapes the message of Holocaust memory, these messages are linked. Our findings show that educators blend personal, national, and ethnic Holocaust narratives, while social media discussions often intertwine with political narratives.

3.	Global and local manifestations of Holocaust memory differ significantly.

Since the 2000 Stockholm International Forum on the Holocaust, a fragmentation of global and local Holocaust memory forms of remembrance has gradually been taking place. In Central and Eastern Europe, this is evident in the tension between remembrance of the Holocaust and Soviet oppression, with Soviet-era suffering often overshadowing or competing with Holocaust memories. Examples include Poland's minimal acknowledgment of its role in Jewish persecution, and Hungary's partial recognition of its collaboration with Nazi Germany. In the West, universal lessons about fascism, racism, and human rights, while prominent, are often adapted to national interests. For instance, Spain overlooks its past collaboration, and England focuses on its World War II heroism, while neglecting its treatment of Jewish refugees.

4.	Political positions significantly influence Holocaust memory, with conservative and liberal ideologies offering different forms of memory.

Holocaust memories in Europe are often believed to be shaped by each nation's role during the Holocaust and by their post-World War II history. However, our study indicates that political ideology is a crucial factor. Broadly, conservative-nationalist groups tend to promote narratives of national heroism and competitive victimhood; centrists focus on a cosmopolitan memory, emphasizing the Holocaust's universal lessons; and leftists use Holocaust memory to critique prevailing narratives and highlight other mass atrocities. Thus, a government's political stance is a significant predictor of its nation’s public Holocaust discourse.

5.	Holocaust comparisons abound, but not all are of the same nature.

Holocaust comparisons are diverse, and include equating, relating, juxtaposing, or associating the Holocaust to other events, people, or experiences. Comparisons are complicated to navigate, because they involve conflicting motivations such as competing narratives, victimhood battles, attempts to keep the memory of the Holocaust alive, the desire to protect freedom of speech, social activism, efforts to combat antisemitism, and a wish to sanctify the memory of the Holocaust. Our study revealed the widespread use of comparisons and a personal version of them that we called ‘relationing,’ in education, media, and political discourse across countries. These comparisons run the gamut from historical events (including other genocides, slavery, Stalinism, and colonialism) to current phenomena (such as climate change, animal rights, rise of far-right ideologies, and COVID-19-related regulations). They range from comparing political figures to Hitler, Mengele, and Nazis at large to contrasting personal experiences such as being bullied to those of Jews in the Holocaust.

6.	Guarding against oblivion and indifference in Holocaust memory is paramount.

Somewhat paradoxically, the varied and oftentimes contentious nature of Holocaust memory helps keep it relevant, while a uniform narrative may risk its significance fading. As Holocaust events become more distant, and as survivors and witnesses pass away, educators struggle to engage students with its increasingly remote reality, and social media often references the Holocaust in current contexts rather than historical discussion. The primary concern for Holocaust memory may not be the diversity of narratives, but rather the growing trends of forgetfulness and indifference.

The five articles in this issue relate to different aspects of these characteristics of Holocaust memory transformations in Europe:

• Joanne Pettitt and Sue Vice’s article examines the depiction of a fictional Nazi-occupied Britain in post-2016 media, contrasting modern adaptations such as the 2017 television series SS-GB about the Nazi occupation of Britain and C.J. Carey’s novel Widowland with older works like Len Deighton’s SS-GB and Robert Harris’s Fatherland. These adaptations, especially in a post-Brexit context, reveal a shift towards a British-centric narrative, focusing on national identity and heroism while marginalizing the Jewish Holocaust experience. This trend underscores the shift from a European to a nationalistic British perspective, influenced by political and cultural shifts like Brexit. It also provides insight into how political and cultural shifts can impact the collective memory and representation of the Holocaust.

• Jazmine D. Contreras explores the intersection of far-right politics and Holocaust memory in the Netherlands, focusing on the Forum for Democracy party. The paper illustrates how Holocaust analogies, especially around COVID-19 policies, are used to reframe Dutch memory politics, recasting Jews as alien and minimizing the Holocaust. This case study reveals the normalization of Holocaust relativization in a country traditionally seen as tolerant, showing how far-right movements manipulate historical memory for nationalist, exclusionary agendas. This article is especially relevant following the recent election results in the Netherlands.

• Anikó Félix and Piotr Forecki’s paper examines local memory politics in Hungary and Poland, focusing on two monuments. The controversies over these monuments symbolize a trend towards competitive victimhood and ‘de-Judaization of the Holocaust,’ erasing Jewish victims from local memory. The analysis highlights how public commemoration is used to manipulate historical narratives for nationalist purposes, reflecting internal historical policy towards Holocaust memory. In both cases, instances of helping Jews during the Holocaust are instrumentally reconstructed to serve the present; namely, to ensure a more positive self-image of these national communities. Local understandings of the Holocaust dictate the intersection of history, politics, and memory, underlining the role of victimhood appropriation in advancing a present-day exclusionary agenda.

• Tracy Adams and Shmuel Lederman’s article introduces the terms ‘currency’ and ‘Zombie memory’ to analyze contemporary Holocaust remembrance. It demonstrates how Holocaust memory is utilized in public discourse, often trivializing, or distorting its historical significance. The calculated deployment of Holocaust memory in various public-political and social domains complicates the notion of the Holocaust being thought of and understood solely as a moral touchstone. Rather, the symbolic currency value of the Holocaust – latent until catalyzed by present-day associated events – demonstrates its utility and function as a versatile political resource.

• Nurit Novis-Deutsch’s paper investigates the varying degrees of freedom experienced and expressed by Holocaust educators in Eastern and Western Europe. Based on interviews with 75 educators, it maps the challenges of teaching the Holocaust under different political regimes and social climates. While educators in Eastern Europe face restrictions, they often respond with creative resistance. Those in Western Europe enjoy greater freedom and, perhaps as a result, demonstrate high levels of pedagogical pluralism. This highlights the impact of educators’ personal choices on Holocaust education.

The articles in this issue span studies concerning six countries, employ diverse methodologies, and reflect different disciplinary perspectives. Nevertheless, they reach some similar insights. First, the articles reveal how Holocaust memory is appropriated for political ends. Contreras’ analysis of the far-right in the Netherlands and Adams and Lederman's concept of Holocaust memory as a ‘currency’ show its exploitation in serving political and ideological objectives. Second, the studies indicate a trend of incorporating Holocaust memory within national narratives, often leading to a distortion, or overshadowing of the Jewish experience at the cost of universal Holocaust lessons. Third, the articles underscore Holocaust memory as contested and demonstrate their ripple effect: These ‘memory battles’ range from the public discourse to the educational domain, to films and television series, to local debates about monuments, and to social media conversations. Finally, the articles suggest varying extents and implications of historical distortion or manipulation. Pettitt and Vice’s analysis of British media post-Brexit and Félix and Forecki’s examination of monuments in Hungary and Poland reveal a spectrum from subtle shifts to overt political distortions in Holocaust narratives. Contreras’ work on the Dutch far-right exemplifies direct, politically motivated manipulation.

The articles collectively explore how the Holocaust is remembered, distorted, or appropriated for various national or political purposes, highlighting the fragile nature of its memory in public consciousness, and its susceptibility to reinterpretation and manipulation across various contexts. This is particularly relevant in light of the recent Israel-Hamas war mentioned at the outset of this introduction. These events highlight the need for a nuanced understanding of how Holocaust memory is a living, evolving narrative that continues to influence and be influenced by current happenings. The integrity and accuracy of Holocaust memory are crucial in maintaining its educational and commemorative value. This issue, therefore, emphasizes the importance of vigilant scholarship and public engagement in recording and preserving Holocaust remembrance, ensuring that its lessons remain an integral and accurately represented part of our collective history.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 Matthew Mpoke Bigg, “Israel’s UN Envoy Criticized for Wearing Yellow Star of David,” The New York Times (Nov. 1, 2023): Section A, p. 5.

2 The White House, “Remarks by President Biden on the October 7th Terrorist Attacks and the Resilience of the State of Israel and its People:

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2023/10/18/remarks-by-president-biden-on-the-october-7th-terrorist-attacks-and-the-resilience-of-the-state-of-israel-and-its-people-tel-aviv-israel/#:~:text=There%20is%20no%20rationalizing%20it,Jewish%20people%20since%20the%20Holocaust (Oct. 18, 2023).

3 Charles Creitz, “Bibi Adviser Suggests Hamas Invasion Worse than 1930s Germany: 'Nazis Tried to Hide Their Crimes,’” Fox News:

https://www.foxnews.com/media/bibi-adviser-hamas-invasion-worse-1930s-germany-nazis-tried-hide-crimes (Oct. 27, 2023); Andrew Roberts, “What Makes Hamas Worse than the Nazis,” The Washington Free Beacon:

https://freebeacon.com/culture/what-makes-hamas-worse-than-the-nazis/ (Nov. 24, 2023).

4 Inbal Hannael, “No Limit to Lies: Mohamed Hadid Compares Israelis to Nazis,” Ynet: https://www.ynetnews.com/culture/article/hjti1zima (Oct. 29, 2023); “Colombia President Gustavo Petro compares Gaza siege to Nazism,” Buenos Aires Times: https://www.batimes.com.ar/news/latin-america/colombia-president-gustavo-petro-compares-gaza-siege-to-nazism.phtml (Oct. 9, 2023).

5 Haidar Eid, “Gaza 2023: Our Warsaw Uprising Moment,” Aljazeera: https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2023/10/10/gaza-2023-our-warsaw-uprising-moment (Oct. 10 2023).

6 Grzegorz Rossoliński-Liebe and Bastiaan Willems, "Putin’s Abuse of History: Ukrainian ‘Nazis,’ ‘Genocide,’ and a Fake Threat Scenario," The Journal of Slavic Military Studies 35, no. 1 (2022): pp. 1–10.

7 Adam Parsons, "Ukraine War: Putin is a Modern-Day Hitler and Russia is Doomed to Suffer the same Fate as Nazi Germany, Says Zelenskyy's Most Trusted Security Adviser,” Sky News: https://news.sky.com/story/volodymyr-zelenskyys-most-trusted-security-adviser-says-all-of-ukraine-must-be-liberated-from-russian-invaders-12729556 (Oct. 25, 2022).

8 Rafael Medoff, “Why Hamas Can Rightly be Compared to Nazis: The Similarities are Undeniable,” New York Post:

https://nypost.com/2023/11/18/opinion/why-hamas-can-rightly-be-compared-to-nazis/ (Nov. 24, 2023).

9 Dina Porat, “Should We Compare the Hamas Assault to the Holocaust?” Haaretz:

https://www.haaretz.com/opinion/2023-10-23/ty-article-opinion/.premium/should-we-compare-the-hamas-assault-to-the-holocaust/0000018b-5cbb-d307-adbb-7dbb40b50000 (Oct. 23, 2023).

10 Omer Bartov, “What I Believe as a Historian of Genocide,” The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/10/opinion/israel-gaza-genocide-war.html (No. 10, 2023); John Benjamin, “The Real Danger of Using Holocaust Analogies Right Now,” Time Magazine: https://time.com/6336249/oct-7-gaza-holocaust-essay/ (Nov. 16, 2023); “Yad Vashem Chief Rejects Comparison Between Hamas Atrocities, Holocaust,” Times of Israel: https://www.timesofisrael.com/yad-vashem-chief-rejects-comparison-between-hamas-atrocities-holocaust/ (Nov. 23, 2023).

11 Mor Link, “The ‘Gaza Holocaust’: The Outrageous Framing of the War by the Arab Media,” INNS: The Institute for National Security Studies:

https://www.inss.org.il/social_media/the-gaza-holocaust-the-outrageous-framing-of-the-war-by-the-arab-media/ (Oct. 25, 2023).

12 Jeffrey C. Alexander, “On the Social Construction of Moral Universals: The Holocaust from War Crime to Trauma Drama,” European Journal of Social Theory 5 (2002): pp. 5–85.

13 Aleida Assmann, “The Holocaust – A Global Memory? Extensions and Limits of a New Memory Community,” in A. Assmann and S. Conrad, (eds.), Memory in a Global Age (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2010).

14 Daniel Levy and Nathan Sznaider, “Memory Unbound: The Holocaust and the Formation of Cosmopolitan Memory,” European Journal of Social Theory 5, no.1 (2002): pp. 87–106.

15 Tony Judt, Postwar: A history of Europe since 1945 (Penguin, 2006).

16 Jelena Subotić, Yellow Star, Red Star: Holocaust Remembrance after Communism (Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press, 2019); Jelena Subotić, "The Appropriation of Holocaust Memory in Post-Communist Eastern Europe," Global Crisis in Memory, the special collection of Modern Languages Open no. 1 (2020): p. 22.

17 Amos Goldberg and Haim Hazan, (eds.), Marking Evil: Holocaust Memory in the Global Age (New York: Berghahn Books, 2015).

18 Nurit Novis-Deutsch et al., Sites of Tension: Shifts in Holocaust Memory in Relation to Antisemitism and Political Contestation in Europe (Haifa: The Weiss-Livnat International Center for Holocaust Research and Education, 2023).