GREENSBORO, N.C. (WGHP) — The Holocaust is complex, heartbreaking and challenging to understand, but that doesn’t mean its history shouldn’t be taught.
In Nov. 2021, North Carolina lawmakers passed the Gizella Abramson Holocaust Education Act. The law, signed by Governor Roy Cooper, mandates Holocaust education in public middle schools and high schools.
With antisemitism on the rise and Holocaust deniers becoming increasingly vocal, and even mainstream, proponents of the legislation say this education is especially critical today.
“Holocaust education is important to understand. Not only how this happened but also to understand something about the Jewish community prior to the Holocaust,” Rabbi Guttman said. “What sort of country and society do we want to build here?”
Guttman has taught the history of the Holocaust for 40 years. And with a bigger focus being placed on Holocaust education in schools, he had an idea.
“I had taken Jewish groups to Poland to learn about the Holocaust on 20 different occasions, and I decided there could be a nice integration of my experience leading groups and guiding in Poland on this topic with the teachers here,” Guttman said. “And if we could find the teachers, they could become teachers not only to kids but to other teachers.”