Exhibiting the Holocaust, Exhibiting the Self: Museum Tour Narratives and Post-Holocaust American Identity

The Righteous Among the Nations of the World

“…For example, participants at the Righteous Among the Nations exhibits reflected upon "what would I do" as it related to current ethical and moral dilemmas (Albert, 2013). This reflection also accompanied emotions such as sorrow, anger, and hope, which may be facilitators of learning and an input into the meaning making process (Dirkx, 2001(Dirkx, , 2008 and a space connecting learning and emotion (Parrish, 2010).…”

“…Although there is the potential for creating communities of understanding, these communities can be fragmented or overlapped in complex ways in free-choice learning environments particularly related to international topics, which can be controversial (Reece, 2005;Yelich Biniecki, 2015). Albert (2013) challenges educators and researchers to constantly question "Whose memory of the Holocaust?" (p. 56) is being communicated within museums.…”

“…(p. 56) is being communicated within museums. Narratives about the Holocaust are constructed within specific cultural, political, and societal settings and are a mechanism to communicate stories in particular socio-historical contexts (Albert, 2013).…”

“…Gauging interpretations, learning, and reflections in such museums remains a challenge because of the dynamic nature of the informal learning environment (Ciardelli & Wasserman, 2011). Connecting the past with current ethical and moral dilemmas is part of the reflection and learning process in Holocaust museums (Albert, 2013).…”