Author’s Note: There are no photos to accompany this blog post. While photographs, without flash, are permitted at the United States Holocaust Memorial and Museum; I chose not to take photos when I visited.
“The location of the museum asked visitors to ‘pay attention’ to a crucial memory, and the attributes of the building informed visitors that they must, in order to pay attention, leave Washington” (89).
The Book
Any book that tells a piece of the Holocaust narrative is a weighty book to read. You come face to face with how depraved humanity can be and the senseless murder of millions of people, simply because of their ethnicity. Preserving Memory: The Struggle to Create America’s Holocaust Museum by Edward T. Linenthal is no different. However, the overall purpose of the book is different: a chronicle of the 15-year struggle to determine how best to remember the Holocaust in the United States.
Linenthal begins the book with the 1993 dedication of the United States Holocaust Memorial and Museum and traces how the Holocaust was ignored, forgotten, or downplayed until the 1960s. Numerous events, both in America and abroad, resulted in President Carter creating the President’s Commission on the Holocaust in 1978. From this point, Linenthal launches into an in-depth narrative: the early days of the commission and struggle with how to memorialize, the location and building, the permanent exhibit, and the role of the museum in memory.
Section one details
the beginnings of an idea to remember and commemorate, something that the
average person isn’t often privy too. The commission, originally chaired by
Elie Wiesel, faced the challenges of how to remember the Holocaust and who to
remember (only Jews or other victims of the Nazis). Wiesel, and many other
commission members, argued for the focus to be on Jews only and to educate, not
only memorialize. Section two walks readers through how the location and
architect were chosen. Linenthal helps the reader visualize the museum,
pointing out the meaning behind the architectural designs, both inside and
outside. Sections three and four break down the thoughtful decisions that went
into the design of the permanent exhibit. Staff members struggled over what to
include and where to place items in the museum’s narrative. Finally, section
five looks at how the memory on display at the United States Holocaust Memorial
and Museum impacts us today.
As I read Preserving Memory, my mind was transported back ten years and I vividly remembered walking through the museum, in ways I hadn’t for years. Linenthal places the reader in the museum with his descriptions of architecture, exhibit space, and artifacts. He also allows the reader a glimpse into the decision-making process and the meaning behind seemingly simple decisions (i.e., only glass, steel, and stone were used in construction to indicate permanence, and photos of Jews before the Holocaust enabled them to be remembered as they were, not how Nazis viewed them). The controversies are not glossed over, but given due space. These include the location of the museum, the exclusion of other victims of the Nazis, the use of certain artifacts, and the actual role of the museum. The overall book is grounded in first hand narratives from commission members and other key players in the development of the museum. Their thoughts, arguments, and counterarguments show their struggles with how to best remember an event many of them survived.
The Place
The United States Holocaust Memorial and Museum is located adjacent to the National Mall and Washington Monument in Washington, DC. While it points visitors to a very different historical event than the rest of the iconic spots on the National Mall, it is still just as important. The permanent exhibit begins with an elevator ride, a confined space, that transports visitors to the fourth floor. They join with American soldiers as they encounter the concentration camps and then go back in time to the rise of Nazi power. Artifacts, images, videos, text, and models serve as witnesses to the attempt to destroy an entire group of people. The weight of the exhibit grows heavy as visitors make their way back down to the first floor, ending with videos of survivors sharing testimonies. Finally, the Hall of Remembrance provides an opportunity to reflect and process.
The museum just reopened after being closed to prevent the spread of COVID. A free timed ticket is required and all visitors two years old and up must wear a face mask. Two exhibits are still closed to the public, as are the library and resource center. The permanent exhibit is recommended for visitors 11 years and up and can take anywhere from one to three hours. There is no parking facility and visitors are strongly encouraged to arrive via the Metro.
