It is now more than 60 years after the Second World War in Europe ended. I received this as an e-mail that was being sent as a memorial chain, in memory of the six million Jews, 20 million Russians, 10 million Christians and 1,900 Catholic priests, the almost 55,000 homosexuals, 250,000 Roma/Sinti (Gypsies), and 1.5 million children who were murdered, massacred, raped, burned, starved and humiliated with the German and Russian Peoples looking the other way! Now, more than ever, with Iraq, Iran and others including a few Catholic priests, claiming the Holocaust to be 'a myth,' it is imperative to make sure the world never forgets, because there are others who would like to have history repeat itself.
Below is a Non Sequitur comic strip that you will need to click on to make it large enough to read. Although there is nothing funny about the comic strip or it's subject manner, it is a prime example of Wiley using artistic talent to get the message across.
A word from Jo: As a teenager in high school one of my favorite classes was history. I was fortunate enough to have had a history teacher that made the past come alive for her students. She spoke of historical events as if she had experienced them herself. She always left me with a thirst for more knowledge of what she had spoken of. This was especially true of World War II. She sparked an interest in my heart and mind to read anything and everything I could get my hands on concerning the Holocaust. I searched the pages of those books for something........ anything...... that would make sense of the cruel and sadistic deaths of so many innocent people. All I found in explanation was pictures of a world gone mad. In the midst of the madness was the madman Hitler. In all reality 63 years ago is not ancient history. When I was reading all of those books and looking at the pictures through tear filled eyes, those events that I was researching had only happened some 20 or so years prior. I can not for the life of me understand how anyone can deny that the holocaust happened. How do they explain the photos? I do understand one thing though........ I understand that we should never forget the Holocaust. I will leave you today with this quote from George Santayana: "Those who do not learn from history is doomed to repeat it."
I thank my friend Lynn in Orlando, Florida for the e-mail and my daughter Tersie for the exact words of the quote that I couldn't get straight in my mind.
