Wall of Tolerance To Open With First Lesson
Written by Post Public Information Representative, May 4, 2010, 0 Comments
Courtesy Xochitl Mora,
Documentary “Camera Of My Family” to be inaugural session
Laredo, TX—After a successful launch ceremony just over one week ago, the Laredo Public Library’s Wall of Tolerance Center & Museum will open with its first lesson this Saturday, May 8, 2010, starting at 1:00 p.m. at the Laredo Public Library HEB Multi-Purpose Room, located at 1120 East Calton Road. The lesson, a 19-minute documentary entitled “Camera Of My Family,” will lay the foundation for the subsequent lessons that will be taught over the next seven months.
The documentary is based on the original book of the same name. The photographer of the book and narrator of the film is Catherine Hanf Noren, who created at photographic essay that describes members of her family before and during the Holocaust. Born in Germany in 1938 into a middle-class German-Jewish family, she and her parents escaped when Catherine was only a few months old. Other members of her family remained in Germany; 26 were sent to concentration camps where 19 of them died. Her only knowledge of these relatives comes from old family photographs which she shows in the film.
The short documentary is packed with information and is a valuable tool for teaching the lesson of the Nazi campaign to rid Europe of Jews. It accomplishes the two tasks that all Holocaust media, including museums, should achieve: It gives a chronological history of the Holocaust and it shows how that history impacted one family. Students, as well as adults, have a difficult time grasping the concept of the murder of six million and the hatred and intolerance that caused it. When the Holocaust is explained to them using one family or one person, they are allowed to experience history on a personal level.
Anyone wishing to participate in the Wall of Tolerance Center educational lessons is welcome to attend. The lessons are free and one only need to take an open mind and heart, and possibly, a tissue, to the classes. Students of all ages are welcome; however, because of the nature of the topic, parents should consider the maturity of the child before allowing them to attend. After the documentary, questions and topics for discussion will be posed and attendees will discuss. There are no tests or projects tied to the lessons, nor is attendance at every lesson required. However, these lesson are scheduled so that as many people can attend and participate. While most of the lessons will be conducted in English, accommodations will be made to those who speak Spanish and would like to participate, as well.
These lessons are also developed to spark conversations and dialogue in the Laredo community. The lessons are the first outreach of the Wall of Tolerance Center & Museum, which will house, for its first exhibit, artifacts and memorabilia related to the Holocaust.
For more information, please contact Pam Burrell at the Laredo Public Library at (956 0795-2400, x2268.
