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The Educational Role of Auschwitz
This was the title of an international conference that took place on 16-17 June 2003 in Krakow, which focused on government plans to establish the International Educational Center as part of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum.
The first day, sessions were held in the International Cultural Center:
Taking part were representatives of the Yad Vashem Institute, the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C., organizations of former inmates, the Polish government, the Catholic Church hierarchy, Jewish organizations, members of the International Auschwitz Council, and institutions that are involved in efforts to commemorate the victims of Auschwitz.
Ambassador Shevach Weiss, with Professor Israel Gutman (in the background):
Stefan Wilkanowicz (editor of Znak), Bishop Kazimierz Nycz, Kazimierz Kutz (speaker of the Polish parliament), Professor Wladyslaw Bartoszewski:
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Participants discussed the activities of the main educational centers in Poland today that deal with the Holocaust, as well as the role of university centers in research and teaching on the subject. They were compared to foreign programs, particularly those operating in Israel and the United States.
,hr>Before the conference began, flowers were laid at the camp and Auschwitz victims were remembered. From left: Kazimierz Albin, Szymon Szurmiej and Minister Tadeusz Matusiak.
Professor Wladyslaw Bartoszewski summarized the conference's conclusions, noting that much had been done in recent years. Poland now has special textbooks and teacher training programs, and research centers and university programs are also continuing to develop. Nevertheless, much remains to be done to inform people about the full extent of human hatred and possible methods for combating it.
Professor Wladyslaw Bartoszewski, prisoner 4427, chairman of the International Auschwitz Council:
The many achievements of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum were also emphasized, both in the fields of archival work and preservation, as well as in education, research, and teacher training.
The International Educational Center should thus facilitate cooperation between centers that are already working in this field and act as an institutional partner for leading institutions all over the world, above all for Yad Vashem. It would integrate efforts being made in many different centers in Poland, for example in cooperation with the National In-Service Teacher Training Center.
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The International Educational Center was created within the framework of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Museum itself. This was done for the sake of continuity in terms of the museum's research, educational and archival activities, as well as to facilitate new international cooperation. Such a project could be useful in the plans underway to found a college for the humanities in the town of Oswiecim.
The second day, the sessions met at the Jagiellonian University:
The International Educational Center project has been designated one of the priorities for the second stage in the government's Strategic Auschwitz Program. The conference was organized by the Ministries of Interior and Administration, Foreign Affairs, Culture and Education, in conjunction with the International Auschwitz Council.
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