CLARK — German theologian Martin Niemöller once wrote, “First they came for the socialists and I did not speak out – because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists and I did not speak out – because I was not a trade unionist… Then they came for me – and there was no one left to speak for me.”
This poem is associated with the Holocaust and the inaction of people around the world to attempt to stop the genocide. It is inscribed in the lobby of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., known as the “USHMM.” This is the overriding theme of Arthur L. Johnson High School’s class, Holocaust and Genocide Studies class. On Monday, May 4, students from the class, along with other guests, participated in a trip to the USHMM. The trip was fully paid for by benefactors from Jewish Federation of Greater Metrowest NJ, including transportation, meals and admission.
Along the way, Jonathan Ramsfelder, a second generation survivor, told the story of his family’s harrowing experience in escaping Nazi Germany. His parents were both the only survivors from his family. Of his murdered relatives, Ramsfelder said, “My Oma (grandmother) Hannah had 12 siblings. Eleven of the 13 were murdered in the Holocaust.” Two young uncles were separated from the family and were only reunited with the survivors in their teens. “While I am not an actual survivor,” he said, “it was all around me when I was growing up. It shaped my entire life.”…